


That's Not My Name

by Aly320



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Wayhaught Week
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-04-01
Packaged: 2019-03-20 16:06:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 30,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13721217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aly320/pseuds/Aly320
Summary: To the town of Purgatory, Wynonna Earp died years ago, but it was only the name that died. Years later, Wynonna walks back into Purgatory with a new name and her BBD partner, Nicole Haught, to investigate Ward Earp’s involvement with the supernatural. Oh, and to kill some Revenant scum.Lots of Wynhaught & Wayhaught. (Mainly centered on Nicole Haught.)





	1. Partners

**Author's Note:**

> First fanfic! Let me know what you think!  
> Please be advised that you may not recognize the main character's name at first, but it will be explained later in the story, I promise!  
> Most italicized words are thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First fanfic! Let me know what you think!  
> Please be advised that you may not recognize the main character's name at first, but it will be explained later in the story, I promise!  
> Not yet sure of what rating to use, but i will update it accordingly.  
> Most italicized words are thoughts.

*****A random bar somewhere** **in Canada** *******  

"Shots, shots, shots, shots.. shots-shots!!" Melanie takes a quick shot and screams along with the song, "Everybody!!" 

The entire bar erupts into laughter and screaming as Melanie walks across the bar-top, taking glasses out of men's hands and tossing them back like water. Her dark brown hair was wet with sweat and her tank top was damp with alcohol, but she didn't seem to mind at all. She danced across the bar like she owned it, and when the bartender told her she had to get off, two burly men picked her up like a princess and placed her on a different table to dance.  

When Melanie realizes that this new table was not as stable as the counter was, she sat on a large man's shoulder and took another shot.  

"You're the best seat in the house!" Melanie yelled to Rusty, the man whose shoulder she sat upon.  

"Thanks! You could drink a grown man under the table Mel!" Rusty pointed to a unconscious man sliding out of a chair. 

"You ain't seen nothin' yet Rusty! Put me down a sec, will ya?"  

Rusty obliged and sat Melanie down on the ground. She walked up to the counter where a man was sitting by himself, with a glass of what Melanie could only presumed was Scotch.  

_H_ _e's_ _hot._ Melanie thought to herself.  

"Hey guy, wanna buy a lady one of those?" She leans into the gentleman's shoulder with frisky eyes and points to his drink.  

"Not interested." The man says bluntly without making eye contact.  

"Well that's just rude, you didn't even give me a 'once over'!" Melanie grunts.  

"Fair enough," the man turns his head and looks Melanie up and down, "I've changed my mind."  

Melanie smirks and grabs the man's glass and downs the whole thing in one gulp.  

"Wanna get outta here stranger?" Melanie winks at him.  

The man stands up, places a bill on the counter, grabs Melanie by the hand and heads for the door.  

"See ya later Rusty!" Melanie waves as she exits the bar.  

Melanie gets into a black SUV with tinted windows with the stranger. He starts the vehicle and drives off without a word. She doesn't start to suspect anything is wrong until he locks the doors and pulls off into a vacant lot.  

"Oh no buddy," Melanie pulls out her knife from her coat pocket, "I'm too drunk for any creepy shit." 

The man quickly grabs the knife from her hand, closes it, and places it on the dash in front of him.  

"I'm not going to hurt you," he pulls out a badge from his pocket, "I just want to talk with you." 

Melanie laughs, "Ha! I'm no rat! And I won't be talking to no pigs," she tries to pull the door handle, "now unlock the door!" 

"I'm not here to ask you to rat on anyone."  

"I don't care what you are here for, unlock the damn door!" She starts to punch the door panel. 

"Please just listen to what I have to say, Wynonna." 

Melanie froze. She wasn't sure if she heard him correctly. 

"My name is Melanie Peterson." She didn't make eye contact with the man.  

"Your name is Wynonna Earp," the man corrected.  

"What the fuck?! Who the fuck are you?!" Melanie began swinging at the man in the driver's seat. She hadn't heard that name in 15 years, and it infuriated her. 

The man grabbed her arms, folded them over themselves, and locked them in place around Melanie's body, compressing her to the passenger seat. Melanie struggled to break the lock, but she tired herself out quickly. Too much drinking, too much dancing, and too much hyperventilating.  

"My name is Xavier Dolls, I work for a U.S. government agency and I am investigating Ward Earp and paranormal activity in Purgatory."  

For a moment, Melanie stared into Xavier's eyes to see if she could catch a glimpse of crazy, but all she could see was determination.  

_Maybe this guy_ _is_ _the real deal. The badge look_ _s_ _real enough._  

"And what the fuck do you want from ME?" 

Xavier let go of Melanie and leaned back over into his seat, "So you are aware of the paranormal?" 

Melanie scoffed, "Well Mr. Fancy Badge, you know my real name is.." she winced and decided to omit it, "so haven't you read my file?" 

Xavier nodded, "I've learned not to believe everything I read." 

"Smart man," Melanie rolled her eyes, "what did it say?" 

"That's classified information."  

"Psssh, I know everything there is to know about myself, thank you very much, so how is that classified information?" She raised an eyebrow. 

"All government intelligence is classified, Wynonna."  

"Stop calling me that!!" Melanie punched the dashboard, "That's not my FUCKING name!"  

They were both quiet for a moment, before Xavier reached to the backseat and pulled out a manila file with the words 'Wynonna Earp' written on the tab. Melanie reached for the file and Xavier pulled it back quickly before she could even skim the edges.  

"Classified," Xavier reminded her, "But if you are willing to cooperate, I could let you peek at a few pages." 

Melanie squinted at Xavier, "And what does this 'cooperation' entail?" 

"A clean bed, special training, and a pay check."  Xavier hands Melanie a clipboard, "Sign it and we begin tomorrow morning."  

Melanie stared at the contract attached to the clip board. The stamp on the paperwork was so official. 'Property of the United States Government,' it read.  

"U.S. Black Badge, huh?" Melanie grabbed the pen Xavier handed her, "Do you even have jurisdiction here?"  

"Our division crosses over several continents and is recognized by hundreds of-" 

Melanie puts her hands up to silence him, "I'm not actually interested," she begins to read the contract over, "wait, this part right here," she points on the paper, "'According to the Health and Safety Act of 1974, drugs are prohibited-,' prohibited!? For rizzle?"  

"Alcohol is permitted after hours." Xavier assures her.  

"Well at least that's something."  

 

****** **2 months** **later** **-** **Somewhere** **in Alberta,** **Canada** ******  

"Okay Earp-"  

"Dolls, if you don't cut that shit out," Melanie (Wynonna) punches Xavier in the shoulder. After months of interaction, he still insists on calling her by her birth name.  

"The training seems to be paying off. That ALMOST hurt," Xavier smirks, "So today you will be meeting your partner." 

Melanie tilts her head in confusion, "Partner? I thought we were partners, Dolls." 

"I am your superior officer." Xavier corrects.  

"Well then why the fuck have we been working together for the past few months?" 

"Training together." 

"Well excuse the hell out of me."  

"You're excused." Xavier pulls a manila folder out of the backseat of his SUV.  

Melanie chuckles, "Is there like a manila folder producing black hole under the seat back there?"  

Dolls ignores her and opens the folder to a picture of a red head police officer, "Officer Nicole Haught, Alberta district, and top of her class at the academy." 

Melanie grabs the folder and inspects the photo, "I don't play well with cops, but she cute."  

"I'm not asking you to rate her appearance W-yy- Melanie." Dolls struggles again.  

Melanie closed her eyes tight in frustration. She understood why it was so difficult for Dolls, he read her 'Wynonna Earp' file (a file she had yet to get a peek at) 10 times over, so when it came to actual interaction with her, the name would roll off his tongue naturally, but she still hated it. She had spent more than a decade trying to reinvent herself as Melanie Peterson by drinking away the memory of Wynonna Earp. It worked for the most part, but then she would wake up sober the next morning in some random hotel, splash her face with water and stare at herself in the mirror. It was in her eyes, her nose, her jaw line; 'Earp' was written all over her face. She disgusted herself. 

Dolls takes the folder back from Melanie, "Officer Haught had a brief interaction with the supernatural a few months ago, so our superiors want us to recruit her or discredit her before the information can be documented."   

"Damn, Dolls.. Why don't you just shoot her now, and avoid all the trouble?" Melanie asks sarcastically.  

"Our superiors think it's too messy since she is in law enforcement. They aren't sure how far the information has already spread, so killing her may just cause more questions and suspicion." Dolls checks his watch nonchalantly.  

"God damn! I was being sarcastic!"  

"There she is." Xavier nods out the window towards an obvious Nicole Haught walking down the street in her police uniform.  

"She's like a bullseye with that red hair," Melanie thinks twice about her comment, "That doesn't mean you can shoot her."  

They watch the officer get into her car and drive off. Xavier turns on the SUV and begins to follow the car. They keep a safe three car distance from the officer at all times, but begin to notice she is making sporadic turns.  

"I think we just drove in a figure-eight maneuver." Melanie unbuckles her seatbelt and begins to climb in the back.  

"Did we?" Xavier glances over at Melanie , "What are you doing? Don't go back there!" 

Melanie jumps in the second row behind the driver's seat, "Don't worry, I won't touch your precious files."  

Before Xavier could protest any further he turned onto a street that he did not recognize and lost sight of Officer Haught's car.  

"Fuck." Xavier pulled off to the side of the street, parked, and pulled out his phone. He dialed a number and went to put the phone to his ear when he realized that there was already a pistol pointed there, "Fuck," he repeated.  

"Hand over the phone." Officer Haught demanded.  

Xavier handed it over in compliance with both his hands in plain sight.  

"Why are you following me?" Nicole pressed the pistol to his temple. 

"Woah, woah. You're crazy! I'm not following you." Xavier lied.  

"You think I'm a fool?" Nicole cocked the gun and pressed harder against his head, "Black SUV, tinted windows, Washington plates, and your phone has a generic background." She holds up the phone to show him the screensaver and then slams it on the concrete, breaking it to pieces, "Why are you following me?!" 

A gun popped out from between the door and the driver's seat and was pointed right at Nicole. 

"Cool it, Haught-pants!," Melanie warned waving the nose of her gun, "Back up." 

Nicole backed away from the car still pointing the pistol at Xavier.  

Melanie opened the back door and relieved a second gun pointing at Nicole. She hopped out the SUV and directed both guns to Nicole's chest.  

Xavier spoke, "Officer Haught, we are government operatives sent here to recruit you."  

The red head glances over the pleather jacket wearing brunette, who is casually scratching her head with one of the guns. She tightens her grip on her pistol and speaks angrily through her teeth, "She doesn't look like she works for the government."  

"Aww, thanks.." Melanie brushes her shoulder off with one of the guns, "I pride myself in my ability to not look like a narc." 

Xavier grunted, "How did you get my gun?"  

Melanie shrugs, "You were distracted by a Haught red-head," she winks at Nicole, "so I slipped it out of your holster."  

Nicole rolled her eyes at the cheeky comments, "Your jokes are getting exhausting. I'll shoot your partner if you don't start talkin!"  

"Go'head. He's not even my partner." Melanie plops her arms down to her sides, lowering her guns. 

"Mel!" Xavier pleaded from through the vehicle's window.  

"What dude!? We literally just went over this," she waves one of her guns around, "You said," she points a gun at Xavier and he flinches, "that you were my superior," she swings the gun towards Nicole, "and she," Nicole ducks slightly, "is going to be my partner." 

Nicole knelt down, placed her pistol on the concrete, and raised her hands up in the air, "Okay, okay. My weapon is down. Please just stop waving those things around! You're going to kill someone!" 

Melanie bent down and picked up Nicole's pistol, handed it to Dolls, and reached out her hand to Nicole, "I'm Melanie, nice to meet you partner." 

 

 

****** ***** **L** **ater that** **day** **-** **Black** **Badge** **o** **ffice** ***** ******  

"So, what are you in for?" Melanie took a bite of a powdered donut.  

"What do you mean?" Nicole scanned through the box of donuts on the counter.  

"I mean, what did you see? What did you experience? Supernatural, paranormal, etc, etc?"  

Nicole picked a custard donut from the lot, "A demon... I think," she took a small bite, "some guy with red glowing eyes, attacking a girl in an alley, moved like.. like a rabid animal." She swallowed, "I shot him, but he kept coming.... so... so I kept shooting." She put the donut down, suddenly losing her appetite.  

"Ah me too! Demon killas ova here!" Melanie raised her hand for a high-five. 

Nicole was confused, but after an awkward moment of having Melanie's hand hanging in the air, she decided to smack it.  

"That's what I'm talkin bout!," Melanie celebrated the bonding with a 'raise the roof' gesture, "No shame in this game." 

Nicole smiled at Melanie, she had never had someone react to her story in such a way. She had only shared the experience with two people; one person being her partner who seemed more interested in the fact that she killed someone than in the fact that she said his eyes were glowing red and his blood was black. The second person she informed of the incident was her lieutenant, who told her that she must have been "too tired" to know what she saw and that if she thought otherwise, she would be "placed on psych-leave until a proper evaluation of your mental health proves you can return to your position." Nicole never brought the subject up again, until today. 

"So, what about you Melanie?" 

"Hmm, I was 12. I was attacked. I shot it... Him?" She took a big bite of her donut and spoke with a full mouth, "He got sucked into hell. Flames and all. Nails dragging in the dirt as he fell below, and the hole closed over him."  

Nicole took a step towards Melanie, "My god Mel, you were just a kid..," she placed a hand on Melanie's shoulder to console her. 

Melanie shrugged her hand off, "No biggie Haught-shot. It was so long ago. It doesn't even phase me anymore. I actually forgot about the whole thing until Dolls strolled into my life." She lied. The incident had been scorched into her mind since it had occurred. It was the moment her life fell apart, the moment she disowned her family and quit being Wynonna Earp. 

Xavier enters the room holding a stack of files and slams them on the desk in front of the two ladies.  

"Oh yay, more reading." Melanie jokes.  

Xavier splits the pile of files in half and slides one towards Nicole, "Yes Mel, I will brief you on the pertinent information, but you will read the files," he slides the other half towards Melanie, "in their entirety."  

"Booo." Melanie slumps in a chair, ignores the files, puts her feet up on the table and shoves the final piece of her donut in her mouth. 

Nicole opened the first file in the stack. The first page was of a smiling man wearing a pin-striped suit, "What are we infiltrating the mob or something?" 

Xavier flips a cork board around to reveal three photos with corresponding names. The photos were placed in a pyramid, one on top and two diagonally below it. 

Xavier holds up one finger and directs it at Melanie, "You have one mission, and one mission only," he turns and points to cork board, "gather pertinent evidence that any one of these three people are involved with supernatural activity of any kind. Demons, Revenants, witches, etc. We will provide you with a handbook with a list of the most common supernatural entities that you will need to study."  

"Gathering evidence and studying?" Melanie scoffs, "I needed months of combat training for gathering evidence??" 

Nicole raises her eyebrow, "You trained for months? And you still don't know how to hold a gun?" she chuckles.  

Melanie glares at her, and Nicole diverts her eyes back to Xavier.  

"Like I was saying, you have three targets:" Xavier points to the picture of the business man in the lower left corner of the pyramid of pictures. 

"1) Ward Earp - Descendant of Wyatt Earp. Mayor of Purgatory. Richest man in the county. Extortion. Bribery. Embezzlement. Money laundering. Possible Conspiracy.  Possible accessory to murder. Possible Demonic affiliation. Protected by two large private security guards at all times.  

2)" 

"Wait," Nicole interrupts, "Wyatt Earp? Like gun slinging legend, old westerns, Wyatt Earp?" 

"Yes, THAT Wyatt Earp," Xavier puts his hand in the air to silence her, "Now hold your questions until I'm finished." He slaps his hand over the photo of the woman in the lower right hand corner of the pyramid. 

"2) Willa Earp- Descendant of Wyatt Earp. Daughter of Ward Earp. Possession of cocaine. Bribery. Possible accessory to murder. Possible Demonic affiliation. Protected by one large private security guard when in public. 

And last, but not least," Xavier smacks the photo at the top of the pyramid.  

"3) Robert Svane- Aggravated assault. Extortion. Bribery. Embezzlement. Fraud. Tax Evasion. Possible pandering prostitution. Drug cultivation allegations. Possible accessory to murder. Possible Demonic affiliation. Almost always in a group of four or more." 

"And why haven't these people been arrested yet??" Melanie asks.  

"They have been, but they are either cleared of all charges by a judge before the book is thrown at them, the charges are dropped suspiciously by the defending party, or the witnesses vanish before the case even goes to trial." Xavier explains, "These disappearances, along with some other brutal attacks around Purgatory, have peaked the interest of Black Badge. Especially since this activity is surrounding itself with the descendants of Wyatt Earp." 

Nicole raises her hand foolishly, "What about Wyatt Earp descendants makes this case Black Badge material?" 

Melanie answered with a bored tone, "Legend is: Wyatt Earp put down so many bad guys in his life time that he and his family were cursed. Wyatt's descendants would be haunted by the undead, or Revenants, that Wyatt had killed himself as humans, years ago. Ya-da ya-da ya-da."  

"Wow, you really did your homework." Nicole playfully shoves Melanie's shoulder.  

Melanie smiles, "I don’t do homework." 

Xavier flips the cork board back over, walks up to the ladies, and leans over the table, "Acclimate yourselves with the town of Purgatory, collect intel, and do not engage with the targets." Dolls goes to hand Melanie a cellphone, but stops and hands it to Nicole instead, "I will be calling you twice a day, at 0900 and at 2300, to hear your progress and to inform you of your next task." 

"Why does she get the phone?" Melanie complained. 

"Because Nicole was listening to my presentation, she's an officer that follows orders, and won't kill the battery by playing 'Candy Crush'."  

"Actually I'm on level 305," Nicole receives a glare from Dolls and finishes with, "but I would never use THIS phone for anything like that." 

Dolls checks his watch, "Okay ladies, it is 1900 now, so you have 1 hour to pack up your belongings and start the drive to Purgatory."  

"What?," Nicole looked confused, "Right now? Like, this very second?" 

"Yes, Officer Haught. The mission began the moment you signed your contract with Black Badge. We contacted your department already and explained that you will be taking a hiatus. I expect you both in Purgatory tonight. Get settled in, read over your files, and be ready for my call at 0900 tomorrow morning for your first instructions." 

"Yes sir." Nicole did not hesitate; she picked up her files and headed for the door.  

 

******45 minutes later** **\- Black Badge parking lot** ********  

Nicole threw her duffle bags into the back of a baby blue pickup truck provided by Black Badge. The truck was older, a bit rusted, and had a cab on the back of it. It would be perfect for blending into the small town of Purgatory.  

"Melanie," Nicole called, "wanna throw your stuff in before I shut the back?" 

"Yeah, sure," she came around the truck, threw a backpack in the cab, shut it, and walked back around the truck.  

"Where is the rest of your stuff??" Nicole followed her to the driver's door.  

"That's all I got," Melanie noticed the concern in Nicole's face, "It's all I need." 

"Alright ladies!" Xavier walked up to the girls and handed them both metal badges with stars, "You are officially honorary members of the Black Badge Division." 

Melanie snatched the badge from Doll's hand and held it close to her heart, "This is the nicest gift a guy has ever given me. Well besides this guy Eddie who shared his bomb ass ganja with me after sex this one time." 

Xavier ignores Melanie and hands Nicole the badge and the keys to the truck, "Straight to Purgatory," he orders.  

"Yes sir." Nicole hops in the driver's seat.  

Melanie slides into the passenger seat and teases Nicole, "Yes sir, Mr. Boss man, sir." 

Nicole starts the truck and Xavier walks to the passenger side window. He pulls out a gun from his holster and hands it to Melanie, "Don't shoot anyone." He smiles and adds, "Especially not Haught." 

Melanie grabs the gun giddily, "I'll do my best," She half salutes the Marshall.  

Nicole drives slowly out of the parking lot and can see Dolls watching them from the rear mirror with a smug look on his face.  

"I think he likes you." Nicole elbows Melanie and nods to the mirror. 

Melanie makes a fart sound with her mouth.  

Nicole laughs at her denial, "Just sayin, he's kinda cute, don't you think?"  

"Aren't you gay?" Melanie retorts. 

"Yes, but I can appreciate a good lookin guy." Nicole squints, "How did you know that anyway?" 

"You work in one of the most male dominated fields, you keep casually glancing at my ass, and I read your file." Melanie grins, "Lots of PERSONAL stuff in there." 

Nicole's eyes widen, "Like what??"  

"Like... I'll tell you if you let me drive." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first chapter was a bit rough. I had so much info i wanted to cram in there... I hope you liked it!  
> Let me know what you think!  
> Sorry if Wynonna's name gets confusing! Melanie/Wynonna. I figured that if it were to be anything besides Wynonna, it had to be Melanie!  
> Also, sorry there was no Waverly in this chapter.  
> Chapter 2 has lots of Waverly! And the Wayhaught meeting ;)  
> Thanks for taking the time to read it! I really enjoyed writing it!


	2. One Drink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shorty's. Waverly. Drunk Nicole. The feels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for some Wayhaught.

****2 hours lat** **er- Purgatory** ******  

 The girls arrived in Purgatory by 2200, which was about 30 mins earlier than anticipated. Melanie did not acknowledge speed limit signs, but Nicole didn't bother asking her to slow down since she would ignore her anyway. Plus, they were on a government mission and could flash their badge at any form of law enforcement trying to ticket them.  

During the drive, Nicole read all of Robert Svane's file. It shouldn't have taken her so long to complete the file, but Melanie kept blasting the radio. The loud music made it difficult to concentrate, and especially hard when a good song came on and Nicole couldn't help but sing along with Melanie. Nicole was starting to warm up to Mel; she was witty and fierce, which was a refreshing change from her partners at the force.  

"We passed the motel." Nicole noticed. 

"I know." Melanie bit her bottom lip eagerly.  

"Oh no, I don’t think I like that look..." Nicole sat up, "Where are we going?" 

At that moment, Melanie parked the car in front of a building with a big sign reading 'Shorty's Saloon.' Melanie jumped up and down in her seat from excitement.  

"Do you know how long it has been since I've had a drink!?" Melanie shrieked, unbuckled her seatbelt and hopped out of the truck.  

Nicole followed Melanie to the front of the saloon and grabbed her arm before she could walk through the doors, "I don't think this is a good idea, Mel."  

"Nicole..." Melanie pleaded, "Deputy stick-in-the-mud Dolls has prevented me from having a decent drink for the last month!" Nicole raised an eyebrow and Mel corrected herself, "Okay, for the last week.. Or three days.. Or whatever! But do you know how long it has been since I've been to an actual bar?! Come on Haught! We are here early and everything!" 

"I don't know Melanie.. We have to be up early tomorrow," Nicole argued.  

"Just one drink! Please???" Melanie's praying hands were shaking in Nicole's face. 

Nicole rolled her eyes, "I guess one drink couldn't hurt."  

"Yes!!! You're the best!!"  

Melanie roughly kissed Nicole's cheek and walked through the doors to Shorty's. Nicole wiped off the remanence of the kiss from her face and followed Melanie through the doors.  

 _I'm such a sucker._ Nicole thought.  

Melanie quickly made her way through the bar crowd and straight to the counter. Before Nicole could even catch up to Melanie, she already had 2 beers and 2 shots sitting in front of her.  

"I agreed to ONE drink." Nicole reminded. 

Melanie slid over one of the beers and one of the shots to Nicole.  

"We are celebrating! Take a shot with me!" Melanie picked up her shot glass.  

Nicole picked up the shot reluctantly, "What are we celebrating?" 

"Well, our new-found partnership, of course!" Melanie clinked their shots together.  

"Of course," Nicole repeated and took the shot with Melanie. 

About a half hour passed and Melanie had convinced Nicole to take another shot, about 6 times. Nicole wasn't much of a drinker, I mean she would have a few beers here-and-there, but she hadn’t had this much Tequila since her freshman year of college. On the other hand, Melanie was obviously a professional drinker; she could throw back two shots at a time and wash it down with an entire beer without so much as a flinch.  

Nicole began to sway to the country music playing from the jukebox of the bar. She didn't recognize the song, but the lyrics were something about having a house party. Melanie seemed to know every word of the song, and she screamed it at the top of her lungs. No one seemed to notice Mel making a fool of herself, since almost everyone in the entire bar seemed to be just as drunk and obnoxious. 

When the song ended, Melanie finished the last drop of her beer, jumped off the bar stool and exclaimed, “Gotta see a lady about a ferret. Be right back”  

“Is that even an idiom?” Nicole sips her beer. 

Melanie grabs Nicole’s shoulder unpleasantly, “What did you just call me?” 

“I.. uh.. never mind,” She waves her away. It's best not to confuse the crazy drunk chick. Who really didn’t seem drunk yet. 

“That’s what I thought.” Melanie shoots Nicole with a pretend finger hand gun, winks, and disappears to find that ferret. 

Nicole sat there people-watching the crowd in the bar for a moment. It was packed in here. It mainly consisted of a biker gang (leather, bandanas, chains n all) of about fifteen guys; clinking together beer glasses every two minutes in celebration of who just won an arm wrestling contest, or beer drinking contest, or a celebrating the loudest contest. They all seemed extremely happy and it was oddly pleasant to watch. 

One of the biker guys with a long blonde beard and dark sunglasses chugged a whole mug of beer and slammed it on the table, breaking the handle off of the mug, and screaming in excitement. The sight made Nicole chuckle to herself. 

“They are a comical sight,” a voice came from beside Nicole, “they do this almost every Friday night.” 

Nicole turned to the woman speaking beside her and her jaw dropped. Literally, dropped. The green eyes staring back at her belonged to a gorgeous, petite, brunette, holding a glass of some type of dark liquor. The tiny girl had slid in the stool next to Nicole without her even noticing. 

Nicole shoved her beer in her mouth to cover her nervous reaction, but when the girl smiled at her, Nicole choked. The beer spewed from Nicole’s nose and caused the girl to laugh hysterically. 

 _Shit._ Her laugh was as pretty as she was. And the snort at the end,  _how adorable._  

Nicole wiped her face and chuckled at herself, “excuse me, you caught me off guard.” 

The girl looked confused, “hmm, how’s that?” 

“I didn’t expect to see such a beautiful lady sitting next to me.” 

The girl blushed, and they were quiet for a moment. 

 _Talk to her!_ Nicole thought while taking another sip. 

“Are you here alone?” Nicole broke the silence between them. 

“Eh, no, not really.” The girl finished off her drink impressively, slamming half the contents down her throat without a wince, “l work here.” 

“You’re drinking on the job?” Nicole was jokingly appalled.  

The girl giggled, “noooo, my shift just ended,” she twirled her finger around the ice in her empty glass. 

“Well in that case, let me buy you a drink.” Nicole waved down the bartender. 

“Oh no, you don’t have to do that!” The girl protested. 

“I insist!” Nicole smiled, “let me make up for the embarrassment.” 

“You mean the beer coming outta your nose?” 

Nicole pounded her forehead on the counter of the bar, trying to forget the incident. If she had to bang it out of her own head, she would. 

“It was cute.” 

Nicole lifted her head, “you think I’m cute?” She grinned. 

The girl laughed at her again. Nicole didn’t understand how she was so funny. She had never had a girl giggle at her so much, especially during the first few minutes of meeting. 

“Two of whatever she’s drinking,” Nicole said to the bartender. 

“You sure?” The bartender asked. 

Nicole nodded confidently. 

“It's your funeral,” the bartender walked off for a second and then was back with two glasses full of that dark liquor. Nicole hands her a bill and signals for her to keep the change. 

Nicole grabbed her glass, “Bottoms up?” 

Greens eyes smiled at Nicole as they both took a swig of the new drinks. Nicole almost chucked the drink back up immediately. 

“Ugh, god...,” her tongue fell out of her mouth in disgust, "what is that?" 

“The cheapest whiskey we have,” the girl took another swig, “tastes like shit, but it’s pretty strong,” she shrugged and whispered the next part in Nicole’s ear, “Plus, I get it for free.” 

The whisper sent chills down Nicole’s neck, and caused goosebumps to form over her body. A shiver moved down her back and around to her stomach, where she could feel the cheap whiskey awaken the tequila settling in her gut. 

 _Don’t mix cheap alcohol, Nicole._  

Ignoring the drunk tingles through her body, Nicole took another drink, swallowed hard, and fake smiled at the girl, “it’s not that bad..” 

“You’re a terrible liar,” The girl licked whiskey off the rim of her glass. 

Nicole fiddled with her fingers nervously at the sight of the girl’s tongue, “I am, you’re right, this is horrible...” Nicole took another painful sip. 

“You don’t have to drink it.” 

“I’m not a wasteful person.” 

“I can drink it for you.” The girl reached out her hand on the counter towards Nicole’s glass. 

Nicole nodded in acceptance, figuring that the tequila would thank her later. She slid the glass over slowly, and the girl’s fingers grazed casually across Nicole’s as she took the drink from her. 

“So..” Nicole tried to think of anything but the girl's touch, “can I ask your name?” 

The girl throws her hands up in the air, “Oh, how rude of me!,” she offers her hand to Nicole, “I’m Waverly!” 

Nicole takes her hand. It’s super soft. So soft that she doesn’t want to let go. 

“Waverly...” Nicole says as she stares into those green eyes, “I like that....” Nicole could say that name over and over. She would imprint it in her brain, along with those eyes. How beautiful... what a perfect name it was, “Waverly.” 

Waverly released her hand from Nicole’s grasp, nervously brushed her fingers through her hair, and spin her glass around on the counter, “and who do I have the pleasure?” She peaked up from her drink to glance at Nicole. 

Nicole blushed, and before she could respond, she saw Melanie doing hysterical arm signals from the corner of the bar. She couldn’t make out all the meaning of the signals, but she was sure she could read her lips saying something like, 'fucking over here now.' 

Waverly saw Nicole distracted by something behind her, so she glanced over her shoulder. There was a woman obviously trying to get Nicole’s attention. Waverly wasn’t sure, but she thought she recognized the dark haired woman. It was hard to tell in the poorly illuminated bar. 

“Waverly, excuse me for a sec?” Nicole asked almost apologetically. 

“Sure,” Waverly smiled politely and watched as the red head maneuvered through the bar crowd. 

When Nicole started walking towards Melanie, it finally hit her. She was wasted. She could barely keep her knees from buckling under her and the room was slightly spinning. Waverly must have been the only thing keeping her sober, and as soon as they parted, Wham! Bam! Pow! 

When Nicole finally made it face to face with Melanie, she noticed the way she was looking at her. Arms crossed and brows furrowed, she was not a happy-camper. 

“What do you think you’re doin' Haught-shot?” Melanie griped. 

“'Acclimating' myself.” Nicole grinned. 

“You’re fraternizing with the enemy!” Melanie shoved drunk Nicole against a wall in frustration. 

“Wait, What?” Nicole was confused, she didn’t understand how she couldn't hold herself up straight or what Melanie was talking about.  

 _How d_ _id_ _I_ _get so_   _drunk?_ _..._   _Oh yeah_ _....._ _SHOTS_ _._  

“That chick you’re talking to over there? The tiny one with the hair for days-“ 

“And gorgeous green eyes” Nicole finishes. 

“Sure,” Melanie rolls her eyes, “well she’s an Earp!” 

“No.. no way...” throws a mini fit, “the one hot chick in this bar and she's a target?!?” Nicole frowns and slams herself back against the wall. 

Melanie lifts her hands up and down, mentally weighing the situation, “Well technically, she’s not on our to-do list.” 

 _She’s on my to-do list._  Nicole doesn’t say out loud. 

“But she is someone we should avoid.” Melanie finished, “we can’t go blowing our cover to the baby sister.” 

“Baby sister?” Nicole lifts an eyebrow, “she doesn’t look like a ‘baby’ to me. How old is she?” 

“Oh, wouldn’t you like to know!?” Melanie turns and looks at Waverly who is still sitting at the bar, patiently waiting, “Lover girl over here, psssshh.” 

“Mel..." Nicole tugs on the sleeve of Melanie's jacket, "Can I just have one more drink with her?... I didn’t even get to tell her my name...” Nicole whimpers like a sad puppy, finally clueing Melanie in on just how drunk Nicole was, and pissing her off more. 

“And you WON’T get tell her your name!” She points a finger in Nicole’s face. “I gotta teach you how to handle your alcohol. What did you have like 6 shots and a beer?!” Melanie looks baffled. 

“I think 7.” Nicole points her finger in the air matter-of-factly, “7 shots of Tequuuuuuiiiiiillllllllaaaaaa, and some whiskey stuff.” Nicole smiled proudly while placing her hands on her hips. 

“That’s barely breakfast!,” Melanie starts dragging Nicole out of the bar, bumping into people on the way, “Light-weight comin’ through.” 

Nicole drunkenly tried to break free from Melanie’s grip, but the hold she had on her wrist was like a vise.  

 _I guess some of that combat training did pay_ _off. This chick is strong._ Nicole thought. 

Waverly saw her drunken friend heading for the door, “Wait!,” she stands on a stool so she can be seen over the crowd of people in the bar. 

Nicole looks back at the green-eyed goddess hovering over the bar patrons. She was standing on a stool for her.. Nicole’s heart jumped at how adorably short Waverly was, even though she was standing on a three-foot stool. 

“I didn’t get your name!!” Waverly projects over the loud music. 

Nicole grins, exposing both dimples, “I’m-“ 

Before she could finish, Melanie wrapped her hand around Nicole’s mouth and pulled her out the front door of the bar by her head. 

Waverly frowned at the sight and slowly slumped back into the bar stool. She crutched her face in her hands in defeat, shook her head and smiled to herself.  

 _What a cutie!_  A blush rose to Waverly’s cheeks at the thought of the drunken red head. 

 *****Outside of Shorty's Saloon** *******  

Melanie began punching Nicole in the arm, torso, thigh; anywhere she could hit really. 

“Ow!, what, the, hell, Mel!” Nicole spouted out between landed punches. Rubbing each spot Mel hit immediately after to try to soothe the pain. 

“I,” punch  

“just,” punch  

“told,” punch 

“you,” punch 

“she’s an Earp!” 

“But she’s soooooo pretty” Nicole slurred. The cold outside only induced the warm drunk feeling in Nicole's face.  

Melanie got a good hit in on Nicole’s right boob. Nicole keeled over in pain, holding her chest. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’ll stay away from her! Just stawwwppp hitting.” She put one hand up in defense and the other still consoling the boob pain. 

“I hope you are only this girl-crazy when you are drunk. Which is never happening again, btw! ‘Haught-shot’, my ass!” 

“Top shelf ass, btw!” Nicole grinned. 

“‘Haught-mess’ is more like it!” 

The two girls made their way back to the pickup truck. Nicole stumbled most of the way. Stumbled over a curb, stumbled over her own feet, stumbled into the truck, and stumbled over her thoughts of the beautiful Waverly.... Earp. 

 _Earp._ Nicole reminded herself again.  _Willa’s sister. Ward’s daughter. A green-eyed beauty with_ _the_ _sweetest smile and the softest touch- Stop that. Drunk_ _en_ _thoughts! These are merely drunken thoughts, that will cease to exist when you wake up in the morning...._  

“You know, I’m usually the one being dragged out of a bar..” Melanie sighed as she started the truck and began driving, “it’s not fun being the responsible one!” 

Nicole leaned her head on the cold window and tightly closed her eyes, “yeah well, you were the one buying the shots.” 

“No I wasn’t!,” Melanie cackled, “you didn’t pay the tab?” 

“We had a tab?” Nicole’s eyes grew wide. 

“Guess I’ll add that one to the list of bars I'm banned from” Melanie made a checking gesture with her hand and clicked her tongue against her teeth, signaling a mental note not to never return to Shorty’s Saloon. 

 *****A** **few hours** **later** **-** **Shorty's Saloon** *******  

At 02:30, well after last call, the customers of Shorty’s began to trickle out. Waverly usually had to be the one to lead the stumbling regulars out the door, into a cab or a friend's car, but tonight her aunt Gus was the one kicking everyone out. Waverly stayed sitting on the bar stool where the cute red head had left her to drink alone a few hours earlier. 

Waverly wanted to get drunk tonight. Get plastered! She wanted to dance with a stranger and sing a country song at the top of her lungs in front of the whole bar, like she had seen an unfamiliar brunette do earlier in the night. Perhaps she could have sang “Before He Cheats,” by Carrie Underwood, so everyone would know it was dedicated to her sorry excuse for an ex-boyfriend, Champ Hardy, who probably slept with every semi-good-looking female in town while they dated over the past several years.. but Waverly wasn’t one to hold a grudge, and she didn’t feel much like singing tonight. She wanted to, she needed to. Needed to feel anything besides sadness tonight, but that's all there was; sadness.  

She thought, for a moment, when she struck up a conversation with a sweet, dimpled, drunk, stranger at the bar, that tonight could be different. Maybe those dimples could have eased some of the pain that hasn’t been eased with the passing of time or the absorption of alcohol, but no.. her hope was pulled out the door without even revealing her name.  

Waverly made it a personal goal to not rely on anyone for anything, but tonight, she needed someone. She needed a distraction from her past.  

“15 years...” Waverly sighed as she swallowed another gulp of whiskey. 

Gus walked over to Waverly from behind the bar, “It gets easier, kid.” She put a hand over Waverly’s in comfort. 

“You say that every year Gus...” Waverly put her head face down on the counter, “and every year, I feel the same, possibly worse. This feeling must be getting stronger, or I’m just getting weaker...” 

“Aww com’on Waverly, you’re the strongest person I know!” Gus rubbed Waverly’s shoulder and shook her out of her slump until she lifted her head, “Stop that mope’n!” 

“Okay... but can you tell me again.. ” Waverly lifted her butt up on the counter, so she was closer to Gus, “what was she like?” 

Gus rolls her eyes, “YOU KNOW what she was like.” 

“Yesssss,” Waverly grabs her knees and swings her dangling legs back and forth from the counter in excitement, “I just like it when you tell me.” After a few seconds of silence Waverly adds, “pllleeeaaaassee...” 

“Wynonna was a ball of Fire!” Gus exclaims, “She was spunky and fun! And even as a child, she had enough wit and attitude to take down a rich man’s ego.” 

Waverly clapped in excitement. She loved when Gus would describe Wynonna. It always felt like she was telling the story of a legend. Wynonna Earp. The girl who could have brought happiness and excitement to her life, who could have bonded her family together, who could have kept momma from leaving, and who could have kept Waverly from her constant feeling of loneliness. She wasn't sure if any of that would have actually happened if Wynonna was still here, but it was nice to dream.  

No one beside her and Gus ever spoke of Wynonna; not her sister Willa, and certainly not her daddy, Ward. It had been 15 years ago today that Wynonna had died, and Willa didn’t have a clue why Waverly had been so upset at breakfast this morning.  

 _What kind of people forget the day their sister died!? Or daughter died?! I was 6 and_ _I_ _remem_ _ber_ _it like it was yesterday!_  

Waverly knew exactly what kind of people forgot a day such as this; selfish people. People who thought about nothing else but their own gain and didn't think twice about the past. People like Willa and Ward.  

Ward Earp; The self-centered, drunk, embarrassment of a father. The (pretty much self-appointed) mayor of the town of Purgatory who did nothing with the title but approve land development for bigots and spent the tax payers' money on new additions to the Earp mansion. The father who didn't care if Waverly choose to basically live with her aunt and uncle, just as long as she wasn't a bother to him. 

And Willa Earp; The most arrogant, rude, sorry excuse for a sister you will ever meet. The girl who is always doubting Waverly's decisions, but was caught doing cocaine off a striper's stomach at the age of 19. The sister who tells Waverly that she should stay with her idiotic boyfriend, Champ, and then goes behind her back and makes out with him at a party in front of the whole town.  

Waverly felt guilty for having the same blood running through her veins, so she did her best to make up for all the destruction that her family had caused. Every weekend, since she was 13, Waverly would volunteer her time at the community center to help those who were less fortunate (mainly due to her father's high tax rates and closing of small businesses). Waverly met many people at the center and her presence quickly became a joyous sight in Purgatory. She was no longer known as Ward Earp's daughter, or Willa's little sister. She was 'Waverly,' a ray of sunshine, to everyone.  

When Waverly began to dedicate most of her time to her online degree (which she paid for with money from aunt Gus and uncle Curtis, and her Shorty's earnings), she began anonymously donating large amounts of money to the community center on a regular basis. Of course, this was after she noticed that Ward kept thousands of dollars stashed in a big black safe in the back of his closet, and that it was so old that all she needed was a stethoscope to figure out the combination.  

At first Waverly was nervous that Ward would find out that she was stealing from him, but he never did. Maybe he doesn't keep track of his money, or maybe he thought Willa was taking it. Either way, donating the money always helped Waverly feel a bit better about herself.  

 _It's not like Ward needed the money anyway._  

"Waverly," Gus interrupted Waverly's thoughts, "Give me a few moments to shut the lights out and I'll drive you home." 

Waverly nodded, grabbed her coat from behind that counter, and placed some chairs upside down on the table tops while she waited for Gus to return. She spotted the vase of daisies on the counter that she had bought the day before to brighten up the atmosphere in the bar and decided that she wasn't ready to go home just yet.  

"You ready to go, kiddo?" Gus locked the front door and made her way towards the back exit.  

Waverly grabs the vase of daisies, "Sure, but can we make a pit-stop first?"  

 *****Twenty minutes later – Earp**   **Homestead** *******  

Waverly and Gus were standing in the pitch-black back yard of the old Earp homestead in front of a single gravestone. Waverly carved a small hole in the dirt with a piece of metal fence she found, so she could place the vase of daises securely in the ground.  

"I think she would have liked daisies." Waverly sniffled as she stood up from the ground. 

Gus put her arm around Waverly and kissed her temple, "I think so too, sweetheart." 

Tears flowed from Waverly's eyes, "We miss you, Wynonna."  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Waverly breaks my heart in this chapter... I'm in love with her character. Can you tell?  
> Thanks for reading! If you would like the story to continue, leave me a kudos or a comment!  
> I have so many ideas for the Earp family and Wayhaught that I would like to write! :)  
> Also, I haven't decided whether Wynonna's (Melanie's) love interest will be Dolls or Doc. Or if I will keep it true to the show and have them battling for her. Vote on it in the comments!!


	3. Ward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the comments guys! I really enjoy them!  
> I'm going to do my best to upload one or more chapters a week.  
> Enjoy! :)

*****(Shitty) Purgatory Motel – The next morning*****  

With eyes still closed, Nicole reached her arm out to silence the alarm on the BBD cellphone that awoke her hangover. She pushed the button on the side of the phone to silence the alarm but knocked the thing off the table when she pulled her arm back lazily.  

"Ugh," Nicole rolled over on the small dusty cushion that she had obviously slept uncomfortably on all night. Her neck was stiff, back was sore, and knees ached from dangling off the edge awkwardly, but nothing compared to the pounding in her head. The queasy feeling in her stomach was a close second. 

_NO MORE TEQUILA, NICOLE. DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT THE WORD 'TEQUILA' ANYMORE._  

Nicole finally opened one of her eyes and found that she was on a tiny couch in a small yellow motel room. There was an empty queen-sized bed in the middle of the room that had been slept in, but there was no one in sight.  

"Mel??" she sat up on the couch slowly and waited for a response, but there wasn't one.  

After wobbling her way to the bathroom and filling up a paper cup with water, drinking it quickly, and filling it up again, she fished the BBD cellphone out from between the couch and the table where she had dropped it. 0807, the phone read; almost an hour before the first call from Dolls was expected. So, Nicole decided to grab the files from off the dresser, next to the outdated television set, and try to get a little more intel before her first official day as a BBD agent.  

Nicole had read Robert Svane's file the night before and it all sounded like propaganda to her. There were too many words like 'possibly' and 'conceivably' in the report. He could have been anything from a drug lord to a serial killer, but there wasn't much detail. It seemed BBD wasn't quite sure who Svane was or what illegal things he was doing. The only absolute fact known was that he had beaten a Sheriff half to death a few years before, and he was always followed by a rowdy group of felons. It didn't help that he didn't exist to the government until about ten years ago, which may be the reason he is at the top of the Purgatory pyramid of convicts (the government likes to keep tabs on everyone). Robert Svane's story was a mystery and it bored Nicole that there were barely any hard facts about the supposed mobster boss. 

On the other hand, Ward Earp had an interesting story: A town-nut who turned into the town-drunk and then, miraculously, became the town mayor. It was an extreme underdog story, but no one was rooting for him. At first, Ward was ridiculed for his fascination for all things supernatural and for alienating his family from the rest of the town. Then after he was let go from the police department, due to "budget cuts," he began to drink heavily and frighten people with stories of how his family was cursed. A former Purgatory resident quoted Ward saying, "The entire town of Purgatory is a living hell waiting to go up in flames." 

When things didn't seem like they could get any worse for the "cursed," unemployed, drunk father of three, they got much worse. His middle child, Wynonna Earp, was killed at the age of twelve by, what was determined by the Purgatory's Sheriff's department as, a brown bear attack. Some of the young Earp's bloody clothes were recovered from the woods near an area commonly known for bear attacks. Shortly after their daughter's death, Ward's wife Michelle divorced him and left him alone to take care of his two remaining daughters, Willa and Waverly.  

 It seemed that the death of a daughter and loss of a wife was motivation for Ward to start a new life. That same year, he started a construction company that became quite popular in town, perhaps because the entire town pitied him. Eventually, Ward's business spread past Purgatory limits and engulfed the county, making Ward a very wealthy man. He began to frequent town hall meetings, joined the Purgatory district council, developed his own business proposals for the town, and eventually ran for mayor and won.  

Soon after his first year as mayor, Ward began raising taxes, bringing big businesses to the small town and ignoring any objections from the people of Purgatory when private owned shops in the town began going bankrupt. It seemed that Ward was the only one benefiting from his political position.  

It wasn't until his last year of his first term as mayor, did the speculations of his involvement with illegal activity begin to arise, but nothing was ever concrete enough to impeach him from the position. From bribing judges for permits to covering up the suspicious disappearances in town; the various rumors about Ward Earp brought power to the corrupt mayor by promoting fear into the people of Purgatory.  

When the time to elect a new mayor arrived, Ward ran unopposed.  

_Damn.._   _But where did the Revenants fit into this story?_  Nicole thought. She examined the picture of Warp Earp that was paper-clipped to the manila folder. Wyatt Earps great grandson didn't look like such an awful man. He had the face of a working man; strong and stubbled.  _The worse people are the deceiving kind_ _._  

Nicole turned to the back of the folder where a few more pictures were stuffed between pages. They were a few more pictures of Ward; one of him shaking hands with other politicians, one of him at a podium, one of him with two very large security guards, and one with him in front of Shorty's with.... Nicole froze when she saw who was in the photo.  

It WAS Waverly.  

The same giggling girl she had met the night before was standing in the same photo as Ward Earp. Nicole had read her name in the file and Melanie had warned her that she was the youngest Earp, but to see her in the same photo as the crooked man was unsettling. Still, Nicole couldn't help but stare at her beautiful face. Waverly was squinting in the photo, either at the sun shining in her eyes, or at the conversation she seemed to be having with her father. She wore jean shorts and a red top that was tied up in the back to expose her abdomen. The word "Shorty's" was written in white on the chest of the shirt. The outfit was very similar to the one Waverly had been wearing the night before when she bought the girl a drink.  

Nicole couldn't help feeling that Waverly was a completely different being than the other Earps. She didn't seem to belong in the same photo as her father. Willa had her own inch thick BBD file, and Waverly only had ONE photo. Perhaps, she was innocent. Nicole had to find out more about her, for... mission purposes... Yeah that's it.  

Before Nicole realized that she had been staring at the photo for too long, Melanie busted through the motel door yelling, "I'm home Haught-stuff!" 

Nicole scrambled to put the photo back into the folder, slap it shut, and throw the file on the couch cushion next to her.  

"Heeeeeeyyy," Nicole greeted Melanie in a not-so-casual way.  

"How's the hangover?" Melanie doesn't notice Nicole's awkward wave or over enthusiastic grin as she sat down a brown bag and two coffee cups on the dresser.  

"Let's just say I don't plan on drinking again any time soon, " Nicole got up from the couch, "Are one of those for me?" She pointed at the coffee cups.  

"No." Melanie watches Nicole sigh and sit back down on the couch, "BUT, I guess I could share." 

Nicole smiles in response and Melanie hands her a cup.  

"Thanks," Nicole takes a swig and automatically spits it up on the floor, "Oh my god," She gags and runs to the bathroom.  

"Rude!" Melanie reaches into her brown bag and pulls out a sprinkled donut.  

Nicole swishes water around her mouth and spits it into the sink, "That's not coffee Melanie!"  

"It is coffee," Mel takes a bite of her donut, "Irish coffee." 

Nicole walks out of the bathroom, over to her bag on the floor, takes out her toothbrush and returns to the bathroom.   

"Do you survive on whiskey and donuts?" Nicole inquired before shoving the toothbrush in her mouth.  

"Don’t judge me."  

The BBD cellphone rang. Before Nicole could rinse the toothpaste out her mouth, Melanie grabbed it.  

"Yooo Dolls, what's shakin?"  

"Officer Haught?" 

"Aww I've missed you too!"  

Dolls realized it was Melanie, "Where is Officer Haught?" 

"She's here, just rinsing the whiskey out her mouth." 

Nicole grabs the phone out of Melanie's hand, "This is Nicole, sorry about that, sir." 

"I gave you the phone for a reason Haught." 

"I am aware. I won't let it happen again." 

"Good. Your first assignment is to attend the annual Purgatory Fall Festival. Study the town. Get to know your surroundings. Ward Earp is going to give a speech. Observe his movements. Blend in. The festivities begin at 1000."  

"Yes sir." 

"AY AY Captain," Melanie yelled from the background, not having a clue what she was responding to.  

Dolls sighed from the other end of the phone, "And keep a close eye on Melanie." 

"Sir?" Nicole was confused. 

"Let me know if she acts... unusual." 

Nicole was still confused but decided she would ask him later when the subject wasn't devouring donuts on the bed behind her, "Will do."  

The call ended.  

"What's the sitch?" Melanie licked frosting from her fingers.  

"Are you quoting Kim Possible?"  

"It's appropriate! We are secret agents, Dolls calls and gives us missions... You even have the red hair!" Melanie defended herself.  

"So, if I'm Kim," Nicole taps a finger to her chin playfully, "then you are Ron?" 

"Gross, no!" Melanie sticks her tongue out and then confidentially adds, "I'm Shego." 

*****1 hour later*****  

_This is NOT the Purgatory I remember_ , Mel thought as she moseyed down the main street to the town-square where the festival was underway. There were antique, craft, coffee, and frozen yogurt shops everywhere. Orange and yellow balloons and painted fake leaves decorated the front of all the businesses. Every lamp post that she walked by was painted a different funky pattern and had a Purgatory flag hanging from it that read, "You'll Never Want To Leave." Melanie chuckled to herself at the slogan because all she had ever wanted to do was leave Purgatory. When she did leave, she never wanted to come back, but here she was, jumping back on the saddle of her own accord.  

The new paint job and face-lift didn't fool Melanie, she could already feel her body start to drag under the weight of this heavy town. She might have also been exhausted from having no sleep the night before. The hotel bed, although dusty, was quite comfortable. Much better than the bunk she slept in at BBD the past couple weeks. Her brain just would not shut off. Attempting to focus all her brain momentum, she had opened the files Dolls had given her to study. She read the first paragraph of Willa Earp's file four times before giving up. She hadn’t comprehended much.. Something about a strip club?  

 The last night Melanie remembered having a similar restless night was when drunken curiosity had persuaded her to do an internet search on her long-lost family. A few smiling faces in a congratulatory Mayoral speech photo had made Melanie throw her laptop against a wall and break it. Well, it was her friend Eddie's laptop that she had "borrowed" a few months prior, but she really liked that laptop... But that’s how she knew that the tiny brunette bartender from Shorty's last night was baby Earp. 

Seeing her first Earp, (well other than herself) in 15 years, was nerve wreaking. To say the least..  

Seeing her second Earp was revolting. 

Over the large crowd of people gathered in the middle of Main Street, standing at a podium in a black suit and orange-plaid tie, waving at the crowd with a pageant-worthy smile from the stage, was Ward Earp. Melanie’s stomach flipped and she wanted to run, just like the last day she had saw him. The last day she was Wynonna. 

_“Get over those hills, and don’t look back.”_

_“_ _Daddy, please!_ _”_  

_“Forget about your sisters._ _Forget about Purgatory.”_  

_“Please!”_  

_“_ _Do what I said! Now!_   _”_  

_“_ _I can’t, I can’t go alone!_ _”_  

_“_ _You, stubborn girl!_ _I’ll kill you myself Wynonna!!!_ _”_  

A gun shot echoed in Melanie’s mind.  

“Earth to Melanie.”  Nicole waved a hand in front of Melanie’s face and broke her out of a trance, “You okay?” 

“Peachy,” Melanie loosened her hands out of the fists that were clinched to her sides and stuffed them in her jacket pockets.  

Nicole wasn’t convinced, “You looked a bit-“  

“I said I’m fine, Nicole.” Melanie snapped. 

“Good morning Purgatory!" The audience began to cheer, and the ladies drew their attention to the stage. “I’d like to welcome our citizens and all those who have decided to visit our beautiful town today to our 4th annual Fall Festival! I’m proud to be hosting such a wonderful occasion!” 

Melanie was already sick from seeing Ward's face, but his voice was even worse. She moved her focus to Nicole, who was standing next to her surfing the crowd with her eyes. Mel noticed that Nicole's bottom lip was twitching slightly as she scanned, like she was whispering to herself to remember what she saw.  _Cop stuff._  

As an attempt to blend in, Nicole was wearing a black and red Calgary Flames hat and a sleek black pullover sweater, but Melanie thought she still looked too much like a cop.  _Who wore pullovers besides cops? Hoodies are the ultimate weapon for blending in._   _Get it together Officer Haught_. On the other hand, Melanie was wearing her favorite black pleather jacket and pair of ripped, faded, blue jeans. Biker girl chic. She never looked like a cop and would probably be the only reason they weren't spotted by the two giant security guards standing right and left flank of Ward at the podium.  

By the time Melanie started paying attention to Ward's speech again, he was just finishing up, "Be sure to make your way to Purgatory Park, where you can get your picture taken with the brand-new statue of the legend, Wyatt Earp! As Wyatt's great grandson, I believe that he would be proud of the thriving community we have built here." 

Melanie scoffed a bit too loudly in disagreement and a few people standing around her threw her glares.  

"Remember, our festival will be taking place today through Tuesday, so if you are just visiting, please be sure to stay at one of our fine motels or bed and breakfasts to get the full experience of Purgatory! Let the festivities officially begin!" Ward finished his speech by firing a starters pistol into the air, which caused Melanie to wince slightly.  

Everyone cheered (besides Nicole and Melanie) and made their way past the stage and into the streets where booths were setup along the curbs. Food, games, music, and street entertainers engulfed the area. They even had a small petting zoo where there were horses you could pay to ride. It was all very impressive for such a small town.  

"There isn't any police presence here, which is odd, but I counted five more private guards besides the ones on stage with Ward." Nicole's head swiveled, "He must feel a bit vulnerable today." 

"Sure, there are a shit ton of people here. One of them is bound to want to kill the mayor." Melanie agreed. In fact, she knew she was one of those people. "Where are these extra guards you speak of?" 

"There is one of them beside the caramel apple stand right now." Nicole stood in front of Melanie with her back to the guard, and Mel peaked over Nicole's shoulder to get a glimpse of the man.  

Melanie squinted, "Why do you think he's one of Ward's guards?" 

"He was watching him throughout the entire speech and he has a gun holstered under his coat." Nicole turned to a booth, bought two cups of warm cider, and handed one to Mel.  

"I don’t think he's protecting Ward." Melanie took out her flask and dumped a bit of the whiskey in the cup of cider.  

"Is this a hunch?"  

"He's wearing cowboy boots and sporting a revolver. If he's a personal bodyguard, then I'm a virgin nun." 

*****Hours later*****  

After Ward had left the festival, the girls walked around the town, mentally mapping their surroundings, for the rest of the day. Well, at least Nicole was. Melanie had seemed like she was ready to leave since the moment they arrived.  

It was night now, the temperature was dropping, and Nicole was tired of walking around in the cold. 

Nicole shivered, "It's dark and the festival is ending soon. Wanna head back to the motel??"  

"You go ahead, I'll meet you there later." Melanie walked ahead of Nicole.  

"Where are you going?" Nicole inquired.  

"What are you my baby-sitter?"  

Nicole answered her with a smug look.  

Melanie continued, "I'm going to find a drink, okay? Since,  _someone_  got so wasted last night that I wasn't able to enjoy myself at the bar." 

"Fine, Mel. Just call me if you need a ride back to the motel." 

"Will do, partner." Melanie saluted Nicole sloppily and quickly made her way down the street.  

Nicole didn't feel comfortable leaving Melanie by herself in this town, especially at night, but she was sure that arguing with her new partner wouldn't go over well. They had a long few weeks ahead of them, and she didn't want to be a 'buzz-kill' this soon in their partnership. She was sure that Melanie could handle herself, but she still didn't know exactly what there was to fear about the town of Purgatory yet. Ignorance is the scariest feeling. Plus, she could see the uneasiness in Melanie's face all day and thought it could be a good idea for her to unwind with a drink.  

It only took Nicole twenty minutes to walk back to the motel from where she had parted with Mel. The festival attendants had dispersed from the streets, and Nicole had walked back in the silence for most of the way. When she arrived, the parking lot was completely packed, and the sign on the motel read, "No Vacancy." No wonder Dolls had made them leave for Purgatory the night before. This Fall Festival had overpopulated the town.  

As soon as Nicole reached her motel door, the BBD phone rang. She answered it and had a quick conversation with Dolls about how they had studied the town, saw Ward's speech, and he may have people following him (besides her and Mel).  

"Good work, Agent Haught." Nicole smiled at the fact that Dolls referred to her as 'agent.' "What about Melanie?" Dolls inquired with a remorseful tone. 

"Uh, she has been great. Nothing unusual yet, sir." Nicole stammered, "I enjoy her company, and I believe she has a good eye for this type of work, but I will keep you updated."  

"Okay Haught, I'll call you at 0900 with your next task." Dolls hung up.  

Nicole instantly felt a bit guilty about lying to Xavier Dolls, her superior. In fact, she had noticed that Melanie was being unusual. Melanie had spaced out and snapped at Nicole multiple times today, but that could have just been a fluke. Though, Nicole wasn't sure what Dolls had meant by  _unusual,_ since she didn't think of Melanie as normal in the first place. Also, they only had known each other for less than 48 hours. She decided to make a mental note of the possibly unusual things about Melanie, until there was something worth sharing with Dolls.  

Nicole sat on the couch in the motel for a moment. She observed the room and wondered why Melanie had not rented a room with two beds.  _To save money,_ Nicole concluded. She was not looking forward to spending another night with her legs dangling off the side of this small couch. Perhaps, she wouldn't go to bed just yet.  

Instead of reading Willa Earp's file, like she should have been doing, Nicole left the motel and hopped in the pickup truck. She made her way to the other side of town and parked in the same spot in front of Shorty's that Melanie had the night before. Nicole was remorseful that they hadn't paid their tab... that was it. That was the only reason she had returned to Shorty's. Not because a certain green-eyed Earp had been embedded in her mind all day. Definitely not.   

Nicole entered the bar and sat in the same stool from last night at the counter. She looked around the room and noticed that it wasn't as busy as the night before; it was missing a large group of bikers.  

"She's not here." A voice was directed at Nicole from behind the bar.  

Nicole tuned to the dark-haired bartender from the night before, "I'm sorry?" 

"You're looking for Waverly?" The girl poured beer into a mug from the tap, "She's not here." 

"How... Um, no," Nicole pulled out her wallet, "I think I'm looking for you," Nicole sat a hundred-dollar bill on the counter, "My friend and I came in here last night... We were drunk and forgot to pay our tab."  

The girl picked up the bill from the counter, "Oh yeah! Gus was pretty pissed at me for letting that tab go..." The bartender opened the register and began breaking the bill. 

"I don't need change. Keep the rest for your trouble." Nicole insisted. 

"But that's-" 

"Keep it."  Nicole smiled.  

"Thanks!" The girl stuffed the large tip into her pocket, "I'm Rosita." She shook hands with Nicole.  

"Nice meeting you, Rosita." Nicole smiled politely and turned to walk towards the door, doing her best not to be rude about not dropping her name. 

"I'll tell Waverly you were looking for her!" Rosita exclaimed. 

Nicole responded with a big grin and exited Shorty's.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of information! Sorry for the overload!  
> Hang tight, there will be some action in the next chapter. :)


	4. Freaks Come Out At Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Melanie/Wynonna meets two cowboys. Revenants attack. Waverly swoons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the sake of entertainment, the Revenants come back quicker after being taken down by regular guns.

Melanie could have kissed the ground out of excitement when she saw the neon red sign stating, "Liquor, Beer, Wine."  Her flask was empty, and her mind was full of awful memories that she was ready to drown in some whiskey, or tequila. Whatever was cheaper. 

Without reading the name, Melanie jolted through the door of the place to find booze. To her surprise, she saw a half-naked woman dancing on a stage in the middle of the room to Def Leppard's  _Pour Some Sugar on Me._ Also, she noticed that most of the waitresses walking around were under dressed, and that she had stumbled in to a strip-club.  _Pussy Willows,_ was written on a sign over the bar.

"Well I feel like an asshole," Melanie said to herself, "I should have invited Nicole, she might have really enjoyed this place."

Ignoring the atmosphere, Melanie took a seat at a table in a dark corner, flagged down a waitress, and ordered an entire bottle of whiskey for herself. She was ready to wash out the nasty taste that had formed in her mouth the second she saw Ward Earp's face. 

"You know what they say about women and whiskey?" A man with a thick moustache approached her table and spoke under the brim of his cowboy hat.

"Not to mix them?" Mel guessed.

"It's quite the opposite; it is said that a good woman drinks, but that the best woman drinks whiskey." 

"Wait til you get to know me." Melanie slams a shot back.

The cowboy gestured for the chair in front of Melanie, "May I?"

"That wasn't the worst pickup line I've ever heard," Melanie spies the gentleman's abs in the form fitting thermal he was wearing, "and you're not bad to look at either, so why the hell not?" 

For the next few hours, Melanie sat at the table with the cowboy, Henry, conversing about their similar interests in life. There were quite a few, surprisingly. Both were sort-of drifters, both were accustomed to the bar-life, and both hated the town of Purgatory. 

"Then why are you here?" Melanie gazed into the cowboy's bright blues and bit her bottom lip, obviously flirting.

"I could ask you the same question, darlin'." When Henry leaned in closer to return her gaze, he noticed her eyes for the first time. He could recognize those eyes anywhere. Guilt struck the cowboy in the pit of his stomach. He leaned back against his chair and pondered for a moment before getting up. "I'm sorry to say that I must bid you farewell." 

"But it was just getting _good_." Melanie winked at Henry at an attempt to get him to stay. 

"I am very sorry." Henry grabbed his coat from the back of the chair and tipped his hat to Melanie before practically running out of the club.

Melanie lifted her armpit and took a whiff of herself, "That’s not the problem..."

After finishing her bottle of whiskey, Melanie noticed there weren't many people left in the club so, she decided that she should head back to the motel. Drinking alone in a strip joint was one thing but being booted from a strip club after last call was another. She zipped up her jacket and made her way outside. 

Mel walked for a block or two before realizing she didn't know where she was going. She had anticipated on already having a lay of the land with the memory from her childhood, but Purgatory had changed so much since then. She walked half way up one block, recognized nothing, and turned around to go back down the block. 

"Balls!!" She took out her phone in frustration and opened her maps app.

"You lost girly?" A man came out of the shadows of an alleyway. 

"No, but you can _get lost_." Melanie didn't even look up from her phone at the man.

The man kept walking towards her slowly and Melanie could see the tips of his boots in her peripheral. The boots were brown and had red stitching that lead up to a flame pattern at the shin of the shoe. It was a very obnoxious style and Melanie instantly remembered them from earlier in the day. She lifted her eyes to look at the man. Boy, was he ugly. He was medium built with long stringy, dirty brown hair and a scar under his eye. It was the same man who seemed to be tailing Ward Earp at the festival earlier. This didn’t feel like a coincidence. 

“Are you deaf, dude?" She backed up a few feet and put her phone in her pocket. 

The man standing in front of her with a devious look in his eyes, pulled out a knife and began to lunge towards her. Using all the force she could muster, Melanie swiftly punched him in the jaw, making his body twist and blood spew from his mouth.  _Is that blood?_  In the dark, it was hard to tell. 

"I like it when they fight back." The long-haired man twisted back towards Melanie and wiped the sludge from his mouth. 

"I'm usually open minded about fetishes, but you're not my type." Melanie pulled her glock out of the back of her jeans and pointed it at his head.

"Nice try," The man creepily chuckles, "That's not going to do you any good." 

His eyes began to glow dark red as he approached her once more. Melanie's face filled with fear as she laid eyes on her childhood nightmares and realized all those psychiatrists that the state provided were a waste of tax payer’s money. 

_I’m not crazy!! Fuck yeah!!_

Melanie took a shot at the Revenant and her bullet grazed his ear.  _Revenant! He's really a fucking Revenant_ _!_

“Bitch!” The Revenant grabbed the side of his head in pain, “you’re gonna pay for that!”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” she swished her glock in the air playfully, “I’m the one about to take your other ear off.”

Before Melanie could point the gun back at the Revenant, she was grabbed behind by both of her arms and thrown five feet into the side of a car. The glock went flying when she made contact with the car and she wasn’t sure which way it flew, since the crash made her disoriented. 

When she looked up from the bed of glass she was laying in, she noticed that there were now three big ugly Revenants making their way towards her; two of them wielding pistols and one still sporting a knife. 

_I’m starting to wish I was crazy._

Mel took off at full speed around the car and down an alley, bullets ricocheting off the pavement near her feet. She crouched behind a dumpster, pulled out her phone, and hit Nicole’s number. It only took one ring for her to answer. 

“You need me to come rescue you from some creep in a bar?” Nicole joked.

A bullet hit the side of the dumpster and the maniacal laughter of the revenants jingled through the air.

“More like some demons in an alley.” 

“Where are you?” Melanie could hear Nicole already staring the pickup on the other end of the phone. 

“Behind a dumpster in an alley.” Melanie could hear the Revenants getting closer. 

“I’m gonna need more details Mel! What do you see?” Nicole’s voice was full of urgency.

“Hold on,” Melanie ran straight, trying to keep cover behind the dumpster for as long as possible, and then darted for the end of the alley. 

“There you are!” One of the Revenants shouted behind her.  

As she turned the corner, out of view from the approaching demons, she spotted a large market.

Melanie put the phone back to her ear, “I’m by the Whole Foods!!!”

“On my way!” Nicole’s tires were screeching, “I’m less than five minutes from you. Stay on the phone and let me know if your position changes.”

Melanie ran to the closest parked car and ducked behind it, peaking through the windshield to watch the Revenants run out of the alley, “I got three guys right on my ass, I’m sure I'll be constantly changing positions.” She whispers through the phone. 

“You are NOT making an innuendo right now...,” Mel could hear it in Nicole’s voice that her eyes were rolling, “four mins.” 

“She couldn’t have gone far.” The long haired, knife wielding Revenant grumbled. 

The three Revenants split up to look for the brunette. One walked in the middle of the road, and the other two took opposite sidewalks. 

Melanie realized that she didn’t pick the best place to hide and that they would find her soon if she didn't move, but there was nowhere to go without them seeing her... She had to wait it out as long as possible...  _Nicole's_ _gonna_ _make it._

Nicole didn't make it quick enough... Melanie was grabbed up from behind by the collar of her coat. 

"Shit man, watch the jacket." She tried to struggle out of the hold he had on her, but he didn't falter.  

The Revenant wrapped an arm around Melanie's throat to hold her in place and alerted the others, “I got her!” 

"Not for long." 

Melanie broke the hood ornament off the front of the car and stabbed it into his eye causing the revenant to scream bloody murder. He slammed Melanie on the hood of the car and pointed his gun at her, “I'm going to enjoy this bit—“

His sentence was cut short by a bullet exploding half of his skull into the air. The mist of brown blood painted over Melanie and the car. The, literally, brainless revenant plopped to the ground and Mel picked up his weapon.

_Where? What?_ _Nicole?_

“What the fuck?!” One of the other Revenants holding a pistol exclaimed before a man walked up behind him with a shot gun and blew a hole clear through his torso. The man with the shot gun was short but stocky, was wearing a cowboy hat, and had a bandanna covering most of his face. 

Melanie pointed the pistol at the final revenant and the cowboy mimicked her actions with his shotgun while stepping beside her. Feeling naked and helpless without his friends, the final Revenant dropped his knife and took off back down the alley. 

“Who’s the bitch now!?” Melanie shouted at the fleeing demon. 

“Are you hurt?” The cowboy asked with an older, raspy voice. From their new proximity, Mel could make out some crow's feet beside his deep blue eyes that were peering between the beige Stetson and the navy blue bandana. 

“I’ll live,” Melanie wiped her face and held up a hand full of brown sludge, “none of this is from me.” 

“Good. Now you best be getting outta here, those guys don’t stay down too for long.” The cowboy gestured to one of the revenants on the ground who began to slightly twitch.

“His BRAINS are all over my FACE and he’s moving!” Melanie laughed a little too hard. The actuality of what just happened hadn’t sunk in yet.

Nicole came drifting around the corner in the pickup truck. She jumped out of the driver’s seat before the tires came to a complete stop and pointed her glock at the cowboy who was standing beside Melanie. 

“Woah, wait Nicole!” Mel held her hands up, “he’s human! He helped me take down the Revenants.” 

“Revenants?” The cowboy raised an eyebrow. 

Nicole quickly studied the bodies lying in the street and glanced up at the Whole Foods store where she caught the glimpse of a shadow on the roof, “I thought you said there were three of them.” 

“The third one hightailed it after we took out his buddies.” Melanie bragged. 

“You ladies should be getting out of here,” The cowboy repeated, “get in that truck, drive straight past the town line, and keep on movin’.”

“Why? What’s going on? Who are you?” Nicole interrogated the man. 

The Revenant body began to move again and the cowboy put another bullet in it. The movement ceased. 

“That’s why!” The cowboy was furious and aimed his shotgun at the girls, “Now get the hell outta my town!” 

Melanie grabbed Nicole by her arm and tugged her towards the car, “We’re going, we’re going. Chillax.”

Nicole reluctantly climbed into the cab of the truck, gun still level with the cowboy. She earned an elbow in her side when she took too long to turn the key in the ignition. Nicole ran over one of the bodies in the street as they drove past the cowboy. 

“Damn Nicole.” Melanie broke the silence as they turned the corner.

“What?” Nicole responded with an irritated tone. 

“I thought you were gonna shoot the old guy.” Melanie’s said a bit lightheartedly. 

“HE was gonna shoot ME.” Nicole didn’t think it was funny. 

“No he wasn’t. Can’t you tell he’s just cranky?” 

“Mel..” Nicole sighed, “Just tell me how you ended up being chased by demons, on only our second night in Purgatory, and how we are going to explain this to Dolls.”

“Simple. I was walking back from Pussy Willows alone and—“

“Pussy Willows?” 

“Yeah, yeah, I know... I should have invited you.”

*****Rewind a bit** *******

Waverly’s phone buzzed in her pocket. She opened it to see a text from Rosita who was probably waiting behind the bar for Shorty’s to close for the night, since it was almost two in the morning. 

**Rosie:** thought I’d let you know, that redhead from last night was in here looking for you today ;)

**Waverly:** Who?

**Rosie:**   tall, pale, kept you grinning from ear to ear for an hour after she left. 

**Waverly:** Doesn’t ring a bell. 

**Rosie:** don’t play dumb.

**Waverly:** Did this person happened to leave a name or number?

**Rosie:** that’s what I THOUGHT. sadly, no, but I’ll ask her if I see her again, since I know you’re interested. 

**Waverly:** …she’s a... GIRL. 

**Rosie:** do you think she’s cute/hot?

**Waverly:** Yeeeessss.

**Rosie:** and could you see yourself kissing said girl?

Waverly had never thought about kissing another woman before. Not until last night. Not until those soft brown eyes had burrowed into hers and made her body melt. The pale drunk woman was a complete stranger, and only two minutes into their meeting, Waverly had glanced at her pink lips more than she would like to admit.

**Waverly** **:** :P

Rosita was her best friend and even if she didn’t admit the truth to her, she would already know it. 

**Rosie:** I’ll keep an eye out for her ;)

**Rosie:** why are you up this late anyhow?

**Waverly:** Late night reading, but I’ll be heading to bed soon so, goodnight! 

**Rosie:** most 22 year olds are partying at this hour. Goodnight nerd!

On most nights, when she wasn't working the late shift at Shorty's, Waverly would be up reading some anthropology textbook, but this night was different. Tonight was her first night working on her most recent extra curricular activity; Purgatory's Neighborhood Watch with Randy Nedley. 

Waverly had known Nedley for most of her life. Since she befriended Chrissy Nedley in her teenage years, he had waved at her a few times from his lay-z-boy as the girls ascended the stairs to Chrissy's room. When Waverly matured and began to waitress at Shorty's, she noticed that her uncle Curtis and Nedley were well-acquainted drinking companions. Mostly, she and the rest of the town knew him as the Purgatory Sheriff. Until, he was discharged from the department two years ago.

Yes, Randy Nedley was a familiar face to Waverly, but she didn't meet the real Nedley until a few months ago. 

After Waverly's uncle Curtis had died under suspicious circumstances (a very common type of circumstances of the dead or missing people in their town), Nedley unofficially began investigating his death. Heart-attack followed by coyote attack?? Might as well have been Cornel Mustard in the Billiard Room with the lead pipe. The coroner wasn’t even trying anymore. So, Nedley began asking around town about the last days of Curtis’s life. 

One night, Nedley had found himself asking the wrong questions in the wrong place (the right ones in the right place). Several large men, who seemed to have a devilish red glow to their eyes, had followed him to his truck. Bloody, beaten, and outnumbered, for the second time in his life, he was sure that he would die… Miraculously, he wrestled his way into his vehicle and drove off, running down one of his attackers. 

Nedley trailed blood on to his drive way and up the stone path to his porch, where a small arm had secured itself around him. Little Miss Waverly Earp assisted a grown man up the stairs without breaking a sweat. She cleaned and wrapped his wounds in silence, besides the occasional ‘sorry’ when the man would slightly wince at the pain. After she had brought him water and pain killers from the medicine cabinet, she left him to his bed. 

When Chrissy finally arrived, she didn’t notice the blood trail on the porch when she entered her home to change into her party attire. She hadn't even checked if her father was home. 

The girls enjoyed a night of drinks and pool at Shorty’s. Waverly had Chrissy stay with her in the apartment above the bar that night. She hadn't said a word to Chrissy about Nedley. 

A few days later, curiosity got the best of Waverly and she decided to check in on the older man. The bourbon she dangled in front of the peep hole convinced Nedley to open the door. After some conversation about her uncle Curtis, they became quick friends. Reluctantly, Nedley told Waverly about the men with devilish eyes that attacked him, and to his surprise, she didn’t think he was crazy. Instead, Waverly bombarded Nedley with hundreds of facts about Purgatory’s past that had no realistic explanation. She also told him that she had a suspicious feeling about the way her uncle Curtis had died. They both came to a mutual understanding that something supernatural was destroying Purgatory.

Months later, here was Waverly on the roof of a Whole Foods store holding a Remington 700. It was not the most practical weapon for the Neighborhood Watch, but this was not your normal neighborhood. 

“Come in, Sheriff Teddy Bear.” Waverly spoke into her walkie. After a few minutes without a response, she spoke a bit louder, “Sheriff Teddy Bear, come in!”

The teddy bear finally grumbled through the speaker, “Stop with the cutesy names, Waverly.”

“This is not a secure line, please use code names when communicating, and if you have an issue with the code name you were provided then please fill out a change of name request form with proper evidence why it should be changed and turn it into your union representative for review. Over.”

“There are only two of us in this union!”

“Exactly, so as your union rep, I strongly advise you to sustain from debating ‘Sheriff Teddy Bear’, since you look like you could be Theodore Roosevelt’s brother and it’s simply an adorable code name. Ultimately, your request for a name change may be dismissed. Over.”

“Tell me again why I agreed to let you help me with this? Oh, that’s right, I didn’t agree to this.”

Indeed, he did not. He didn't want to put Waverly in any danger at all, but after many days of persistent begging and several nights of her following him without his approval, he just went with it. He liked Waverly, she had guts, but he still didn’t want the young girl out at night shooting at demonic assailants. Call him 'old-fashioned’. 

“Because I’m trained in first aid and have gun-slinging in my genes.”

_This i_ _s_ _true._  Nedley thought to himself. 

It helped that the girl was sharp as a tack and believed that demons were walking among us, unlike the rest of the people in this town. Also, he liked her bubbly attitude; it could be comforting under such horrendous circumstances. 

Echoes of shots broke through the night’s silence. Ready to for action, Waverly sprung from her lawn chair and held her rifle to her chest. 

Nedley was right on cue, “3 coming your way down the west alleyway. Do not engage until I arrive.”

“Copy that.” She whispered into the walkie while crouching with her weapon and scurrying to the west corner of the rooftop. 

Waverly peaked over the ledge of the roof to see a brunette running out of the west alleyway. She watched the girl duck behind a Buick in front of the store as three men ran out of the alley after her. Correction: three demons. Their eyes were glowing red. 

_Yay! Actual demons! I_ _mean... oh no,_ _demons._ This would be Waverly's first shot to save someone from a demon attack, and she was thrilled. She followed Nedley for weeks to prepare for this night.

Waverly watched the three demons disperse along the street and recognized one of them holding a pistol.  _Damn it Carl!_

Carl was a barista at a coffee shop in town. Waverly often had nice conversations with him while he made her herbal tea, and she would tip him generously. Obviously, she wouldn't be tipping him anymore, or going to that coffee shop anymore. 

She watched as Carl, gun in hand, walked cautiously beside the car that the brunette was hiding behind. Waverly readied her rifle, aiming for Carl.  _Come on Nedley._ Waverly was supposed to wait until Nedley arrived to take a shot. It wasn’t safe to shoot at demons when you were alone and cornered on a roof top, but she might have to if he didn't hurry. 

Carl grabbed the brunette from behind. Waverly gripped her rifle tight. The brunette hit Carl in the face with something that made him scream in agony. Carl pushed the brunette on the car and pointed his gun at her. 

_Sorry Nedley, no more waiting._

Waverly took a shot. Her bullet pierced through the back of Carl's head at an angle and exploded his brains all over the brunette.  _Ew_ _._

Seconds later, Nedley blasted a hole through another demon. Waverly cocked her rifle and pointed it at the final man with glowing red eyes who was standing in the middle of the street holding a knife until he ran off.

Waverly finally loosened her grip on the rifle and took a slow deep breath. 

A light blue pickup truck slid around the corner, burning rubber as it stopped. A woman hopped out the truck and pointed a gun at Nedley. Waverly aimed her rifle at the redhead. 

_Wait_ ,  _redhead?_

Waverly watched the redhead through the scope on her rifle. The sweet, funny, cute girl who bought her a drink the other night, was holding a gun to Nedley's head... She could hear the brunette yelled at the redhead and call her by name. 

_Her name is_ _Nicole._

Waverly studied Nicole's face; she was scowling but somehow still looked lovely. Waverly observed as Nicole's eyes met with the dead in the street and then traveled up to the roof top of the Whole Foods. Their eyes connected for a split second before Waverly ducked behind the ledge. Her heart was beating faster now than it had been when she shot Carl in the head. _How did she know i was up here?_  

She could hear Nedley yelling and fire his gun. Waverly popped one eye over the ledge to see both the girls were still alive and retreating to their truck. 

After Waverly heard the truck start and make its way down the street, she plopped her back against the ledge of the roof top in relief, looked up at the night's sky, and replayed the last minutes in her head.

_Brunette, Demons, Carl, Brains, Nedley, Demons, Nicole._

_Demons, Carl, Brains, Nedley,_ _Nicole._

_Demons,_ _Brains,_ _Nicole._

_Demons,_ _Nicole._

_You just blew your barista's head off!!_

_....._

_Nicole._

_Ugh._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Doc is finally in the story. Why was he at Pussy Willows? Hmmm...  
> Special thanks to Nedley for being such a bad ass.  
> Let me know what you think in the comments!  
> Next chapter should be up soon!


	5. Guns on Guns on Guns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mel has a nightmare. Some WayHaught. Some Guns.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have never heard the song House Party by Sam Hunt, you should listen to it before reading this chapter, but it is not necessary.  
> Warning: It is a COUNTRY song.  
> Additional Warning: The song may be stuck in your head for days... So i'm sorry for that.

***** ****Nedley’s House** **-** **4A** **M** *******

_"'_ Revenant: a visible ghost or animated corpse that is believed to have revived from death to haunt the living.'" Waverly looked up at Nedley from her laptop, "That certainly fits the bill."

"Explains why they don’t die. They are already dead." Nedley placed the rifle up on the rack on the wall of his home office.

"Yeah..." Waverly closed her laptop in her lap, leaned back in the recliner, and sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"I've seen their eyes glow red, I've seen them take bullets and get back up minutes later... I've read several textbooks on demonology and the supernatural in the past few months!!"

"And you are wondering how those girls could peg them as Revenants so quickly?”

“Well.. yeah.” 

“Maybe they aren’t here for the festival…” Nedley removed his Stetson and sat it on the desk in front of him. He pulled out his chair from under the desk, took a seat and continued, “That redhead..” he scratched his overgrown stubble, “she had a modified weaver stance.”

Waverly sighed, “Am I going to have to have to google that term as well?” She wasn’t used to being the one without the answers. 

Nedley ignored her frustration and explained, “It’s a common stance taught at the academy.” 

“So she’s a cop?” 

“Not necessarily, but I think she’s had some kind of proper training. Her partner didn’t look like a cop though. She was… for lack of a better word… wild.”

“Rambunctious.”

“Sure.”

“So you don’t think they took your advice about leaving town?” 

“Probably not.”

******* **Shitty** **Purgatory Motel** **\- early morning** *******

_Bright light breaking through the cracks in the wood walls of the barn._ _Fog surrounds._ _She could feel it in her chest._ _Not fog,_ _smoke._

_Little_ _Melanie— no, little Wynonna_ _is cro_ _uched in the rafter_ _s of the barn. She hears voices, arguing._ _She_ _shouldn’t be here_ _._

_“I’m not giving my only leverage away!”_

_“You have no choice!”_

_“Bobo and I have_ _a deal!”_

_“I’m not Bobo.”_

_The air thickens with smoke. Wynonna coughs._ _The voices stop._

_Wynonna is_ _pulled by her legs. Almost instantly, she is out of the rafters and on the ground in the grip of an unknown man._ _She looks up into red eyes. She kicks and screams._

_“Wynonna!”_

_“We got your little girl Ward_ _.”_

_“Let her go_ _Herman!”_ _A gun. It_ _glows as he points it at the_ _woman._ _“I’ll kill your sister.”_

_“_ _Shoot Hetty,_ _I'_ _ll_ _eat this one and I’ll_ _feed the other two to momma_ _when they arrive_ _.”_

_Pain shooting into her_ _shoulder._ _Teeth digging into flesh._ _Blood dripping down her back._ _A shot. He releases her. She runs to her daddy._ _Sobbing. She looks back as the man is engulfed in flames and dragged into the_ _ground._

_Peacemaker..._ _Peacemaker..._ _Peacemaker..._

Melanie is awakened out of her vivid dream by a smack to the face. Nicole is hovering over her in the motel bed.

“Did you just hit me?” Melanie rubs her cheek. 

“I had to wake you up. You were having a nightmare. You were screaming.” Nicole flopped to the opposite side of the bed, obviously, too sleepy to care how appalled Mel was. 

"Shit."

Nicole sleepily spoke in chunks, “Because Revenants probably. Don't worry. We'll be gone tomorrow.” 

“What do you mean?” 

"Dolls will cancel the mission."

"Why?!"

“Uhh, first day, attacked by Revenants, lost your weapon, standoff with cowboy.” 

“You had a stand-off with a cowboy.”

“Whatever Mel.” She covered her head with her pillow.

“Listen Haught-stuff,” Melanie scoots closer to Nicole in the bed, “Maybe you could omit a few things when you speak to the boss man in the morning?”

“Like what?” Her voice was muffled by the pillow. 

Mel yanked the pillow off Haught's head, “Like everything.”

“And why would I do that?” Annoyance was clear in her sleepy voice.

“To buy us some time. I’ve got a plan.”

“Oh boy…”

Melanie had spent the morning convincing Nicole not to inform Deputy Dolls of their encounters from last night. She said she had a plan and to give her some time to work out the kinks. Nicole was skeptical, but she obliged. The officer didn’t want the mission to end after one day. 

Maybe it was her past experience with the supernatural, or her natural commitment to a case. Maybe she didn’t want to throw away her one chance to prove that she could be an asset to the BBD. Maybe she felt like there was something Melanie wasn’t telling her and curiosity was getting the best of the officer. Whatever it was, Nicole wasn’t ready to leave Purgatory. 

Against her better judgement, Nicole didn’t tell Dolls about the Revenants attacking last night. The deputy gave her their mission: Try to find out who placed the tail on Ward Earp. Then he asked how Melanie was doing. Nicole responded with, “oh, you know Melanie. She’s a hand full.” Dolls seemed to be content with that response and hung up. 

Before they could start their day of recon, Melanie needed a gun. The revolver she had picked up from one of the Revenants was garbage. Mel informed the officer that she was a convicted felon, and was sure that the BBD hadn’t expunged her record yet. So the brunette pulled the covers over her head and went back to sleep. Nicole didn’t have the energy to protest, due her roomie screaming in her sleep most of the night, so she set off to the gun shop alone.

When she arrived at the shop, Nicole placed her head on the steering wheel of the pickup truck and sighed. She banged her forehead against the wheel and sighed again.  _What are you getting yourself into?_ When Nicole lifted her head she saw another reason why she wasn’t ready to leave Purgatory just yet. She scurried out of the truck and up to the store front where greens eyes met her with surprise.

“Waverly” the name came out of Nicole’s mouth like a breath she had been holding for days.

“Oh! Heeeeeeyy.” Waverly tried to act casual, “I thought you’d be gone by now.”

“Why’s that?”

“You know people don’t normally stick around here for long. After the first or second night in this boring town, I thought you’d split.”  _Or after you were threatened by a shotgun welding cowboy._

“And miss the chance of bumping into you again?” Nicole bit her bottom lip, “never.”

_Fuck, that’s hot_. Waverly tried to shake the thought from her brain. 

“I’m Nicole by the way,” she extended her hand and Waverly took it, again. 

“Nice to put a name to a face.” A name she already knew.  

“Yeah, sorry about the other night. I had a few too many.” Nicole reluctantly slid her hand from Waverly’s grasp and rubbed the back of her own neck. “I hope I didn’t embarrass myself TOO much.”

“What do you mean? You were super cu—fine. You were fine. Fine as in acceptable! Not as in, ya know, attractive. Though you are attractive! You know what I mean, right?” 

“Uh huh.” Nicole flashed her dimples at the nervous girl, “so were you?” She points to the gun shop door.

“Yes, ya know girls gotta protect herself,” a nervous smile from the tiny brunette who couldn’t stop shuffling her hands around. 

“Well after you then,” Nicole opens the glass door and does an exaggerated curtsy.

“Why thank you Madame.” She does her best British accent and waltzed into the shop.

_Gosh she’s adorable._ Nicole watched Waverly closely, noticing that her hips did a bit of a sway while she walked. The redhead followed those hips into the shop. 

Waverly turned to Nicole, who was now viewing the gun case in front of them, “see anything you like?”

Nicole smirked confidently and her brown eyes peered directly into green ones, “Yeah, I think something has caught my eye.” 

Nicole wasn’t referring to anything in the glass case and Waverly knew it.  _She’s so_ _bra_ _zen…_

The two girls spent the next twenty minutes circling the gun shop quietly, sharing quick glances and subtle smiles. Waverly made her way to the register and purchased some shotgun shells, rounds for her rifle, and a few bullets for a pistol. Usually, Nedley would run this errand himself, but the last time he had made the trip the owner had asked why a discharged officer needed so much ammunition. This made Nedley slightly anxious, so he decided that if Waverly was going to be helping him with their neighborhood watch, then she could get accustomed to the preparations.

“That’s an awful lot of ammunition for protection.” Nicole eyed the large bag the small girl was toting over her shoulder.

“You got me!” Waverly put her hands up in surrender, “I’m a gun range junky, can’t get enough of it.”

“Uh huh.” 

She had a feeling… last night.. she thought she saw… but she wasn’t sure. Shot gun shells, rifle ammunition? What were the odds? 

The man behind the register handed Nicole a black Glock 19 with tiny gold detailing and gold trim on the magazine that she had pointed to in the case. She held the gun up and watched the gold glisten in the light.

“You like that one?” Waverly inquired as she approached the redhead’s side.

“It’s too flashy for my taste.” She handed the gun back to the man, “I’ll take it.”

Nicole paid the man and the girls walked out of the shop together. They stood under the shop awning and observed the change of weather. It had started pouring rain while they were shopping, and the ground was already covered in puddles.

“If you don’t like the gun, why did you buy it?” Waverly almost shouted over the sound of the raining hitting the pavement.

“It’s not for me.”

“Oh.” She couldn’t help but pry, curious by nature, “for a girl?” 

“Yes.” Nicole watched Waverly’s expression change, the brightness in her eyes fell flat, so she quickly added, “It’s for my friend who is a girl. Just a friend-girl.”

The shine returned to Waverly’s eyes as she repeated, “A friend-girl.”

 A trail of rain water fell from the awning and splashed Waverly's shoulder. The girls reacted with giggles and Nicole placed her arm around the smaller woman, pulling her away from the rain and closing the space between them. Waverly nestled into Nicole’s warm body automatically. It was getting increasingly cold outside and Waverly’s thin jacket wasn’t doing her any good. She really shouldn’t have worn a crop-top today, but half of her wardrobe consisted of crop-tops... Maybe looking cold wasn’t such a bad thing when she got to nuzzle herself into Nicole. 

Waverly was shivering slightly, so Nicole rubbed the side of her shoulder, trying to induce heat with the friction. Waverly thought the gesture was adorable. She couldn’t recall anyone ever doing anything so sweet to her before. So simple, yet it made her feel so protected. None of her ex boyfriends have ever made her feel like this, and she had only just met Nicole.  _I think I might be gay._

The extended contact with the girl gave Nicole a surge of confidence, “Would you like to get a coffee with me sometime?” 

“Yes.” There was no hesitation in Waverly's response.  

“Tomorrow morning, around 10?”

Waverly looked up under her eyelashes at Nicole, “It’s a date.” 

Nicole gave a full dimpled smiled to the sweet girl under her arm. The  _sweet_  girl who just went ammunition shopping with her. Who may also be shooting at Revenants from rooftops at night? Nicole had the slightest consideration that going on a date while on a mission wouldn’t be a great idea. Dating an Earp might not be the best idea either…  

_If Waverly was on the rooftop last ni_ _ght, then she could help._ _She could provide some intel on the attacks and who’s involved_ _… and it’s a great excuse to get to know her… and more about her fathe_ _r._

Nicole tried to convince herself that this date wasn’t mostly for pleasure. She was usually very professional when it came to her job and didn’t let relationships get in the way, but she felt drawn to Waverly. Nicole was a moth; Waverly was the flame. 

But she didn’t know that Waverly felt the exact same way, except she was pretty sure that Nicole was the flame…

Eventually, both the girls quit thinking and just stood there listening to the rain. They enjoyed the warmth of each other for a while before Nicole broke the silence, “I should get going soon.”

_Can’t you just hold me for a few more minutes?_

Waverly actually said, “yeah, I should too.” She pulled her cellphone out of her jacket pocket, hit a few buttons and handed it to Nicole, “I’m gonna need your number.”

 “Right!” Nicole took the phone, entered her number, and handed it back. 

“Perfect.” 

Their gaze met. Both were smiling contently.  

Waverly pulled her jacket up over her head to cover her hair, spun on her heels and ran out into the rain towards her jeep. She might have stayed under that awning staring at dimples all day if she didn’t run now. Before she closed the jeep’s door, she looked back at a glowing smile shouted, “I’ll text you!” 

“I’ll be waiting.” Nicole said to herself as she watched the red Jeep drive away in the rain. 

******* **Earp mansion** **\- hours later** ****** *****

Melanie was crouched behind a bush with a pair of binoculars at the back of the Earp estate. She was dressed in all black, trying to camouflage herself in the darkness. She heard a noise from behind her in the woods and jumped out of her skin.

"Shit Haught," she whispered at the redhead approaching who was also dressed in all black, "Are you trying to scare me sober?"

"I wasn't aware that sober was an option with you." Nicole ducked down next to Mel and handed her a black beanie, "Will this work?"

"They didn’t have the ski masks? Or pantyhose?" 

"No. What are we doing anyway? Why would we need ski masks?"

"So they don’t see our faces if we get caught. Duhh." 

Nicole sniffed the air and made a disgusted expression, like she smelled something sour, "Oh gross... Did you pee here?"

"Hey, I've been here waiting on you for a while now. When a girl's gotta go, she's gotta go."

"You could have picked a different bush at least..." Nicole gagged, "I think we have spied on Ward enough for the day."

Melanie grabbed Nicole by her arm before she could leave, "He left hours ago. We aren't here for Ward."

"I have a bad feeling about what you are going to say next." Nicole sighed.

"We are here to steal a gun."

"I bought you a gun this morning Mel."

"Yes, you did, and I am very proud of your choice." Mel pulled her new gun out of the back of her pants and admired the weapon, "The gold trim is a nice touch, but the gun we are going to steal is special to Ward. We HAVE to get it."

"And you're not going to tell me why it's special, are you?" 

"I told you to trust me Haught-stuff. I got a plan."

Nicole did not like not knowing the plan, especially when Melanie was the one who made the plan. It was driving her crazy not to be in control of the situation. 

A buzzing sound came from Nicole's pocket and Melanie scolded the redhead, "Are you yanking my vajay right now? Turn that thing off!" 

"My bad..." Nicole checked the message on her phone quickly, smiled, and then powered it down. 

"Who has been hitting you up all day? That thing has been tethered to your hand. I wasn't aware that you had any friends besides me."

"I wasn't aware that we were friends." Nicole quipped, avoiding the question.

Melanie exaggerated a pout and held her gun to her chest, "You're breaking my heart Nicole." She was over it very quickly. Through her binoculars, she watched a security guard disappear around the side of the mansion. "Here's our chance. Follow me."

Melanie rushed through the back yard of the mansion with Nicole close behind her. They did their best to stay in the shadows of bushes and trees, but there was a large open field they had to sprint across where they could have easily been seen. Thankfully, both women made it to the south wall of the mansion undetected. Melanie reached up and tried to open the nearest window, but it was locked. 

"Okay, so there is only one guard around the perimeter and one at the front door. They can be easily avoided IF we can climb through a window... there are too many windows to check individually... so I'll go this way, you go that way, and we meet in the parlor room. Okay, bye." 

"What? No, that's a bad idea." Nicole protested but Mel already shot along the side of the mansion, "Sure thing boss, whatever you say." She spoke to herself in annoyance at her so-called 'partner.'

Nicole edged along the wall, reaching up and checking for unlocked windows as she went. At about the sixth window, she found her winner. The lengthy woman pulled herself up and in the window with ease. She looked around the pitch-black room cautiously and then slowly shut the window behind her.  _Piece of cake._

As soon as she took her first step, she heard the cock of a shot gun and stopped in her tracks. 

"Don't move." A woman's angry voice came from the darkness. The lights were switched on and Nicole could now see the shotgun pointed at her head and the familiar face behind the barrel.

"Nicole?" Waverly lowered the shotgun a bit.

"Heeeeeeyyyyy," Nicole grinned at the pretty girl with the gun, "I didn't think I'd be seeing you so soon."

"What?" her angry face turned to confused, "What are you doing here?"

"Oh ya know," Nicole nervously swung her arms at her sides, "ya know.."

"No, I don't know." Waverly's eyes grew wide, "Are you stalking me...?"

Nicole laughed uncontrollably, "Oh god, no!" She could see that Waverly did not think this was funny, so she replied again but in a more serious tone, "No, definitely not."

There was an awkward silence between the two women for a moment. Nicole took a step towards Waverly which caused her to instinctually lift her shotgun back up at the redhead. 

"Woah," Nicole raised her hands in surrender, "I'm not going to hurt you Waverly, I would never..." 

Waverly's eyes began to water, and her voice cracked while she spoke, "How can I know that? I barely know you... And I just watched you climb through that window!"

"Trust me, this is a misunderstanding."

Waverly could see sincerity in Nicole's eyes. She wanted to believe that Nicole wouldn't hurt her. How could you not believe those beautiful brown eyes? Less than twelve hours ago, she felt protected in this woman's presence. Now she was holding a gun to her head...

Before Waverly could drop her gun, Melanie popped in from the doorway of the room and pointed her glock at Waverly.

"Dont move sister!" Melanie quickly realized that was a poor choice of word, “I mean uhhh woman," she was more confident this time, “yeah, don’t move woman!” 

Waverly froze in place.

“Put the shotty down slowly.” Mel demanded.

Waverly complied and placed the shotgun on the floor. She was now the one with her hands up in surrender. Oh, how the tables have turned.

“Mel!” Nicole shouted in protest. 

“Don't say my name idiot!”

Waverly was even more confused, “uhhh, Nicole..”

Melanie grunts in frustration, “I guess it doesn’t matter! You’re over here introducing yourself!"

“Mel, could you drop the gun for two seconds?” Nicole takes a cautious step towards Melanie. 

"Why? She's an EARP." Melanie scowled in Waverly's direction.

“What is going on?!” Waverly screamed, pulled her hands down to her sides in fists and stomped one foot on the wood floor.

Nicole put her hand on Melanie's forearm and pushed it down to lower the gun, “she’s not a threat,” she looked over her shoulder at Waverly for confirmation, “right?” 

The small girl nodded eagerly. 

"Fine," Melanie lowered her gun finally, "but don't expect the same curtesy for any other pretty  girls you meet in a bar."

Without the gun pointed at her face, Waverly relaxed a bit, “Hey, aren't you that girl who was singing Sam Hunt at the Shorty’s the other night? That’s my jam!”

“Mine too! Nicole doesn’t even know who Sam hunt is!” 

“We’ll have a house party!” Waverly began singing

Melanie chimed in, “we don’t need nobody!!”

Both the brunettes sang in unison, “turn your tv off, break that boom box out!”

Nicole watched the girls begin to dance in a circle around the study while singing. Melanie waved her gun around as she danced but Waverly didn’t seem to mind it anymore. It was funny to watch, but it was also very odd. This was the first time the girls had interacted, and they seemed instantly connected. Nicole noticed how they had similar dance moves, made common guitar noises with their mouths, and seemed to twirl their brown hair around in sync.  

As Melanie closed her eyes and sang at the top of her lungs the final part of the chorus, “We’re gonna have a house party!!” Waverly grabbed her shot gun off the floor and settled it under her arm, pointing it straight at Mel. 

“You got good taste in music, but you're easy to distract.” 

Melanie lifts her gun quickly, “I thought we were bonding. I guess Earps don’t do friends.”

“Oh, but they certainly do guns, and I don’t need this big of a gun to blow your head off from here.”

“Woah, stand down ladies!” Nicole walked between the two brunettes’ guns, “I can’t have you killing each other.”

“Explain yourself Nicole. Why are you here?” Waverly was pissed now. 

“We are here to....” Nicole looked to Melanie, who was shaking her head in warning, “to.... rob your dad.” 

“Why didn’t you just say so?” Waverly lowers her gun and lets out a large sigh. “That’s why I’m here too!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Waverly and her shotty... yeah... nough said.   
> Thanks for reading guys!  
> 


	6. Puzzles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wynhaught arguments. A little Wayhaught flirting.  
> Nicole has a revelation about Mel/Wynonna.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is sooooo much dialog in this chapter. They just have so much to say i guess.  
> Enjoy! ;)

"Holy Shit!" Melanie almost has a heart-attack when she watched Waverly open the big black safe in the back of Ward's closet. There was so much money stacked in the safe that some bundles spilled out onto the floor in front of the three girls.

“So, what are you looking to get? Jewelry, money?” Waverly picked up a stack of one hundred-dollar bills, "Usually, I can get away with taking a couple stacks without him noticing."

Melanie squealed with excitement, fell to her knees, scooped up as much money as her hands could carry, held it to her chest, and looked up at the ceiling, "Thank you baby Jesus!"

“Actually,” Nicole swatted the cash out of Melanie's hands and lifted her off the ground by her arm, "we're not interested in money. We are looking for a gun."

“Oh, Ward has lots of those. Expensive too. I’ll take you to his weapons room." Waverly took a few stacks of cash, put them in her purse, placed the rest of the money back in the safe and closed it.

Melanie's mouth had been agape since Nicole knocked the money out of her hands, "Not interested in the money?!"

"No, Melanie" Nicole whispered the next part through her gritted teeth, "We are NOT taking dirty money."

"I'm sorry Commander Bossy Britches, but I don't take orders from YOU." Melanie poked a finger in Nicole's chest, "You can be Deputy Do-right all you want, but this is MY plan."

"And I've been on board so far, but you're pushing it."

"Are you two coming, or are you gonna stand there and argue until someone comes in and catches us?" Waverly waited by the door with her hands on her hips, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Coming." Nicole turned away from Melanie before she could get another word in and followed Waverly out the door.

Melanie looked back at the safe, "Don't worry, I'll come back for you baby." She sighed and exited the room to catch up to the other two.

The girls quietly traveled through the halls of the dark Earp mansion. Waverly lead the way up a long stairwell to the second floor, Nicole and Mel trailed her.

"You know Nicole," Waverly continued up the stairs while she spoke, "I didn’t peg a nice girl like you as a criminal.”

“I’m not!” Nicole defended, but Melanie elbowed her in the side forcing her to correct herself, “Besides, ya know, the occasional B & E, and burglary.”

Melanie leaned over to Nicole and whispered angry, “You sound like a cop.”

Nicole whispered back, “I AM a cop.”

Waverly makes it to the top of the stairs and spins around to see the end of the whisper session, she squints at the redhead, "So Nicole, is this your 'friend-girl'?"

Melanie makes it to the top of the stairs and walks past Waverly, "We're partners."

Nicole chokes on her own breath at Mel's wording, "She means we work together," She places a comforting hand on Waverly's shoulder, "yes, she's the friend."

_Thank God!!_ A small smile grew on one side of Waverly's mouth as she looked up at Nicole. She was relieved that she didn't have worry about Mrs. Leather-pants over there. Not that she was checking her out, but Waverly noticed how pretty the brunette was. Her hair was full and wavy, her eyes bright blue, her ass... _nicer than mine,_ Waverly thought.

Melanie had disappeared down the hall somewhere, leaving the two girls alone in a dark hallway. When Nicole noticed they were alone, she slid her fingers from Waverly's shoulder, down her arm, and grabbed the girl's hand softly, "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you all day."

"That's probably because I've been texting you all day."

"Irrelevant." Nicole's serious expression quickly evolved into a soft dimpled smile.

Waverly's face turned a bright red that Nicole could see in the darkness, and her chest lifted with her heavy breathing. Waverly couldn't help it! When Nicole touched her, even in the slightest way, it sent heat shooting through her body. Nicole was an professional flirt... adorable, yet sexy.  _And those dimples..._

Melanie peaked her head out of a room a few doors down, "Psssssstttt, over here."

Nicole let go of Waverly's hand at the sight of Melanie and started in her direction. Waverly was a bit annoyed at both Melanie and Nicole. At Melanie for interrupting the moment and at Nicole for letting go of her hand. _If her and Melanie aren't a couple, why'd she let go of my hand?_ Waverly sighed and made her way into the weapons room where the others were already poking around in the dark.

The moonlight coming through the tall windows lit up the room just enough for them not to trip over anything, "Try to steer clear of the mace over there,” Waverly warned, "my finger and it go way back..."

Melanie approached a large wooden cabinet with glass windows where she could see an assortment of weapons. Right in the center of the cabinet, on an antique wooden stand, was an old fashioned, long barreled, silver revolver, “Bingo!” Melanie tried to open the cabinet but it’s locked.

Nicole observed the stationing of the gun, “Why would Ward hang it up all fancy like that? It’s just screaming ‘steal me now!’”

Waverly was over in the corner poking at the mace that she had warned the girls not to touch. She tipped her finger to the edge of one of the spikes, "Ouch!"

 Concerned Nicole hurried over to her, "You okay Waves?"

Waverly turned to Nicole with her finger in her mouth, "Mmmhmmm," she pulled her finger out of her mouth quickly, "Just a little prick."

"That’s what she said." Melanie chuckled as she jiggled the handle on the cabinet wildly in frustration.

Waverly finally noticed what cabinet Melanie was fiddling with, “No, you can’t go in there!” she pushed around Nicole to grab Mel, but she didn't get to her fast enough.

“Watch me.” Melanie swung her elbow and smashed it through the glass on the cabinet. Her leather jacket protecting her arm from the shattered glass.

A second later, an alarm blared throughout the mansion and Waverly gave Mel an 'i told you so look.'

"Smooth move." Nicole glared and covered her ears to block out the alarm sound. It was deafening. 

Melanie reached into the cabinet, grabbed the revolver, and they all ran out the room.

"So, he put an alarm on his gun case but not on the doors or windows??" Nicole inquired as they all ran down the stairwell in a frenzy.

“That gun is Ward's prize possession,” Waverly reached the end of the stairs and turned on a dime, heading towards the east wing of the mansion, “he used to wear it on his hip everywhere he went, but stopped carrying it about a month ago.”

“Why is it so important to him?”

“It belonged to Wyatt Earp, but shouldn’t you know that? You’re the ones stealing it." Waverly swung open the side door to the veranda where her Jeep was parked nearby, “Get in!”

They all climbed in the red Jeep, the tiny girl started the vehicle, and hit the accelerator before Melanie got a chance to adjust herself in the back.

Mel flew at an angle and hit her forehead on the side panel of the Jeep, “fuck!”

“Oh, sorry!” Waverly was genuine with her apology but when spotted the redhead laughing, she couldn't help but join her.

Melanie who was palming her head in pain, “Shut it, Haught-pants!”

Waverly raised an eyebrow in the rear-view mirror at Mel’s odd pronunciation of ‘hot’ and then veered out of the gate of the Earp estate.

It only took Waverly’s lead foot three minutes to make it to the pickup truck hidden back in the woods south of the estate. Waverly looked over at Nicole who was almost pouting at the sight of the truck. Neither of them was ready to part. The jeep came to a halt and Melanie patted the back of Nicole's seat to signal for her to move her ass. Nicole got the message.

“Thanks for the ride Baby Earp. Don't tell daddy about us." Mel winked and made her way over to their pickup truck. She threw up in her mouth a bit after she realized she indirectly called Ward, 'daddy.'

Nicole walked over to the driver's side window of the jeep where green eyes were smiling at her.

"You're not really a criminal, are you?" It wasn't a question. Waverly wasn't an idiot.

Nicole chuckled and turned her face away in embarrassment, "Is it that obvious?"

"You turned down like $5,000 of 'dirty money.'"

"You heard that huh?"

"You're not much of a whisperer." Waverly props her leg under her bottom, so she is raised up enough to lean out the window towards Nicole, "So are you going to tell me why you are here in Purgatory?"

"That depends," Nicole placed her arm on the roof of the jeep casually, "are we still on for coffee tomorrow?"

"Get your ass movin, Haught!" Mel hollered from the driver's seat of the pickup truck.

_There it is again. Hawt?_

 Nicole ignored Melanie's interruption and waited with high hopes and heart eyes for Waverly's reply.

"I'll be there."

***************

Nicole was grinning from ear to ear the whole drive back to the motel. Melanie was getting extremely annoyed at Nicole's constant humming of every song that came on the radio. When 'I Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore' by REO Speedwagon came on and Nicole was belching out every word, Mel had enough and basically punched the radio to shut it off.

"Come on! That’s a classic!" Nicole went to turn the radio back on when she noticed the time on the clock on the dash, "Is that the right time?"

11:13PM.

Nicole pulled the BBD phone out of her pocket that had been powered down at Melanie's request, "Shit! Dolls!"

"He said he couldn't trust ME with the phone. You're over here shutting it off and missing his calls."

"YOU told me to shut it off!"

"And you listened to me?"

Dolls didn't answer the phone until the girls had made it back to their motel room. Nicole was freaking out so much that she hadn't even thought of an excuse to explain why the phone was shut off.

"Someone better be dead." Dolls didn’t give Nicole a chance to say 'hi' before he was threatening her.

"Uhhhh."

Mel grabbed the phone and mouthed 'I got this' to Nicole.

"Chillax Boss, I spilled my flask, whiskey drenched the whole phone. It had to dry out completely before it would power back on. We put it in a bowl of rice and everything. That shit actually works! Who knew?"

"Uh huh." He wasn’t convinced. It was part of Doll's job to know when someone was lying.

"Oh, and you'll piss your pants when I tell you who's been tailing Ward." Mel laid across the bed and rested on her elbows like a teenage girl gossiping on the phone to her BFF, "Revenants."

"How do you know they are Revenants?"

"They are too ugly to be human."

Dolls knew that meant that it was only a hunch, but she was an Earp, and he knew that meant that not everything could be explained, "Are they protecting him?"

"Nope," Melanie popped the p like a bubble, "We think they are after him. Not sure why though, but we'll figure it out soon enough."

"Okay. You’ll get your next assignment at 0900. SHARP." He hung up.

"Not even a 'good job.' Damn he needs to get laid." Mel tossed the phone on the side table next to the gun they stole from Ward and rolled over on her back on the bed to stretch out.

Nicole was in awe, "What? Mind catching me up on all that?"

 Mel kicked her boots off, "I saved your ass."

Before Nicole could question her any further, she heard a familiar sound, furrowed her brows, crept over to the bedroom window, and pulled back the curtain just enough to confirm her suspicions.

“What?” Mel sat up in the bed to observe Nicole’s paranoid behavior.

 It was the cocking of a shotgun that she heard, and now it was pointed right at their motel door.

"Get down!" Nicole tackled Mel to the ground behind the bed for cover. 

The shotgun blasted the handle off the door and sent shards of wood flying everywhere. Melanie peaked over the edge of the bed to watch the barrel of a gun nudge the, now useless, door open.

“Hello bitch,” the same revenant who’s ear Mel had shot off the other night was standing in the doorway, “did you miss me?” The red in his eyes brightened with anger.

“You really don’t give up, do you?” Melanie stood up from behind the bed and pulled her glock out of the back of her pants, “I already told you, you’re not my type.”

Nicole mimicked Mel’s actions. She noticed the man in the doorway was the one who was tailing Ward at the festival. It all started to make sense to Nicole now. Melanie hadn’t completely lied to Dolls. Revenants WERE after Ward.

“Two against one,” Nicole tried to negotiate, “Leave now and we can forget the whole thing.”

The Revenant laughed maniacally as five other large men with red eyes filed in the room beside him. Two of the men were laughing along with their leader, two were growling like freaks, and one was staring at Nicole like he wanted to eat her. Did I mention they all had gun? Yeah, they all had guns.

“You might want to do another head count, Nicole.”

Melanie wasn’t a stranger to this situation. She had been outnumbered before. Her friend Eddie and she had been cornered by a group of thugs, that they had owed money, a little over a year before this. Melanie had been stomped so badly that she couldn’t remember her name for a few hours after she woke from her unconsciousness. The hospital said she had a few broken ribs and might have had a concussion, but she didn’t stick around to get the results. She hadn’t even wanted to go to the hospital, but Eddie had forced her. He was a good friend and always worried about Melanie, especially since she never worried about herself. Truth was, Melanie didn’t want to go to the hospital because she had hoped that she was bleeding internally. She wasn’t afraid to die, in fact, she embraced the idea. Life was meaningless to Melanie then, and if she was going to die from a beating over sixty dollars, so be it.

Now, Mel had the strangest motivation to stay alive. She didn’t want a pack of ugly Revenants shooting her down and doing who-knows-what with her remains. _That would really suck balls._ Also, there was Nicole… who didn’t deserve to die because she had pissed off the wrong undead son-of-a-bitch in an alley.

And… something else… someone else?

There was this strong feeling pulling her, leading her eyes to the side table. The revolver on the table was glowing blue.

_Wynonna, Peacemaker…_ The voice was in her head.

“That’s not my fucking name!” Mel screamed to no one.

“What?” Nicole and the group of Revenants stared at Melanie in confusion.

_Send them back to hell, Wynonna._

“Okay! Okay! Just stop being creepy!” Melanie tucked her glock back into the back of her pants and reached for the revolver on the side table next to the bed. The Revenants all flinched at her movement, but Melanie didn’t falter. She picked up Peacemaker and whispered to Nicole, “On my signal, out the window.”

Nicole wasn’t sure what that meant… _Is she going nuts? She was definitely talking to herself a few seconds ago…_

 Mel twirled the revolver between her fingers and slowly walked around the bed, “You guys think you’re so tough because you can’t die…” she said with a fake pouty voice, “Well,” she pointed the barrel at the head Revenant, who’s forehead lit up with a symbol, “things are about to change around here.”

As soon as the trigger was pulled, the Revenant was consumed by flames that dragged him into the ground by his feet. Melanie looked over at Nicole who was letting off some rounds into a two of the Revenants who weren’t as distracted by their buddy being dragged into hell...

“That was the signal!”

Mel ran for the window and Nicole followed her, both busting through the body length glass and landing on their feet. The girls ran for the pickup truck parked towards the end of the lot. A Revenant finally got over the shock of what just happened and walked out of the motel room to start firing shots at the girls. One of the bullets grazed Nicole’s bicep, “Fuck!”

Mel turned around and started firing back at the Revenant who ducked behind a car. Nicole made it to the truck, took the keys out of her jacket pocket, got in, and started it. She shot a few rounds out of the driver’s side window, hitting another Revenant who was attempting to exit the motel room. Melanie was still firing at the Revenant ducking behind a car, she seemed determined to kill him, so Nicole backed out of the parking spot and drove up to Mel.

“Get in!” Haught yelled.

Mel hooped in the bed of the truck and kept firing while Nicole sped out of sight.

After Nicole had drove for about fifteen minutes, and there was no sight of Revenants, she pulled over to let Melanie get into the cab of the truck. There was nothing but silence as they drove down the empty dirt roads in the dark.

“So that was something, eh?” Mel huffed.  

Nicole’s jaw tightened, but she did not reply. She wasn’t ready to speak yet. She had all these things running through her mind that she was trying to piece together. _Revenants. Melanie. Waverly. Ward. Willa. Wyatt Earp. The glowing revolver._ Nicole was sure she knew what was going on, but if that was the case, she would be royally pissed the fuck off.

Mel noticed that Nicole’s arm was bleeding profusely from her bullet wound, “Haught, your arm!” she reached for her bicep.

Nicole pulled away from Melanie’s hand and kept her focus on the road. The chill in the air coming through the open window was nothing compared to the chill that Melanie was getting from Nicole.

“I’m sorry, ok?”

“Do you know what you’re sorry for?” Nicole still did not make eye contact.

“That I pissed off a Revenant and he brought his friends to attack us in our motel room.”

“Wrong.”

“What? How can I be wrong? It’s my apology!”

Nicole slammed on the brakes almost sending Melanie’s head into the dashboard. Nicole didn’t care though. Mel needed a lesson on how to buckle her seatbelt, but she also needed a lesson on how to trust your partner.

 “Wynonna Earp.” Nicole’s eyes darted over to the brunette to watch her reaction.

“Huh? Who?” Melanie played dumb.

Nicole got out of the truck and slammed the door, “I’m not an idiot!! I’m a cop Melanie! We solve crimes! Who did it?! What’s their motivation!? How all the pieces fit together! I figure out puzzles!”

Melanie followed the redhead out of the truck, “I love me some jigsaws.”

Nicole rolled her eyes and got in Melanie’s face, “You have prior knowledge of a case that you never even opened a file for. Dolls has you working for the BBD but you’re a FELON and have no prior history of working with law enforcement. There is this unexplainable connection you have to the Earp family! I saw your reaction the first time you saw Ward! It was like you blacked out from rage. The resemblance was scary, when you were with Waverly. I mean, you don’t look like each other, but you guys have this similar demeanor… Plus, you fired Wyatt Earp’s gun, it was GLOWING in your hands, and you sent a Revenant into hellfire. I remember what you told me about your experience with the supernatural, it was the exact same thing! You said you were twelve when it happened, right? Well that’s how old Wynonna was when she died from a bear attack,” She air-quoted ‘bear attack.’

“The timeline adds up Melanie. It all adds up.”

Mel had her arms folded to her chest and hadn’t been able to make eye contact with Nicole since the middle of her rant, “Fuck off with your theories, Haught.”

“Whatever.” Nicole stomped around Mel and got back in the truck, “Just let me know when you are ready to stop lying to me.”

Mel climbed in and buckled her seatbelt this time, “So, do you have any idea where we are going?”

“Revenants will be staking out all the motels in town if they are smart. We will have to leave town to find anywhere safe to sleep.”

“Ehhh, I think I might know a place in town that’s lowkey.”

 

*****Upstairs Apartment of Shorty’s Saloon*****

N_I_C_O_L_E_H_A_W_T

Waverly typed the name into the search-bar, but no information came up.

_Hmm…_

N_I_K_O_L_E_H_A_W_T

_Ugh…Nothing…_

N_I_C_O_L_E_H_A_U_G_H_T

 

A picture popped up of a redheaded police office shaking hands with someone of a higher-rank.

“I knew it! She’s a cop!,” Waverly smirked at the photograph, “And extremely hot in uniform…” Waverly laughed at herself, “Haught… ha-ha… Hot Haught.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peacemaker baby!!! But how? why? Ward is the heir, right? RIGHT?  
> Who's talking to Mel/Wyn in her head? When can we finally call her Wynonna instead of Melanie?  
> Only time will tell.  
> Nicole is a smart cookie, isn't she? "Detective Haught" has a nice ring to it.  
> Where is WynHaught off to next?  
> And will Nicole make it to her date at the coffee shop with Waverly? (Of fucking course she will, I'm not a monster.)  
> Tune in next week for another exciting chapter!  
> Thanks for reading guys! :)


	7. A Sweet Distraction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mel and Nicole find a place to crash.   
> The coffee shop, the bathroom, the shower, the bed. Yup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I'm late with the update! I had a busy week with life lol.   
> This chapter is a bit longer than the last few though. Just a bit.   
> Just a warning, this chapter is a bit smutty towards the end. So if you're not into that. Just skip the whole thing lol.   
> Hope you like it. ;)

It was almost 0100. Melanie had been directing Nicole to an unknown location for an hour now, but really, they were driving in circles. Driving down dark, bumpy, dirt roads in an unfamiliar area was becoming exasperating. The redhead was ready to turn around and head out of town when they pulled up to the entrance of a dark deserted property. A sign suspended over the wooden post that read, ‘Earp.’

“What a coincidence?” The sarcasm in Nicole’s voice triggered an eye roll from Melanie.

Nicole pulled the truck up the drive way slowly, trying not to make too much noise in case the place was still being occupied. From outside the house, there was no sign of movement, but Nicole did not want to chance it. She tugged Melanie around the side of the house and they peered through the windows, making sure the place was empty before they attempted to break in. The windows were so dirty that they could barely see through them. All they could make out were shapes of some seemingly-old furniture. They slunk around to the back of the house where Nicole found that the door there was locked.

“I guess we are climbing through another window tonight.” Nicole turned around from the locked door to see Melanie walking off in the opposite direction in the dark, “What is it Mel?”

Melanie didn’t respond to Nicole, she just gaped at something towards the ground.

“Mel?” Nicole walked up beside her and noticed she was staring at a stone slab.

**_WYNONNA EARP_ **

**_ <3 Beloved daughter & sister. <3_ **

Melanie would have kicked the headstone if she didn’t think it would scuff up her good boots. Well, her only boots, but they were still good. She was standing before her own grave, but that wasn’t what was bothersome. _Fucking ‘Beloved daughter’?!_ She couldn’t believe that Ward had the balls to imprint such a lie on his daughter’s fake resting place. Every muscle in Melanie’s body tightened with the rage that consumed her. She jumped in reaction to Nicole placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“I’m sorry…” Nicole pointed to some newly wilted Daisies in a vase next to the headstone, “Someone here is still thinking of you.”

A tear had fallen down Melanie’s cheek. She was crying out of anger, not sadness. She turned back towards the house and used the sleeve of her jacket to wipe the tear away quickly without letting Nicole see her.

“I told you to stop with your theories, Nicole.” Melanie looked up at the house to see a familiar man pointing a pistol at her from the open back door, “I’m not in the fucking mood for another gun fight tonight, Henry.”

“Another?” The man asked.

Nicole turned around to see who Melanie was talking to and saw a thick-mustached man in a cowboy hat and gray thermal. _How many cowboys are there in this town??_ _What are we in the Wild West?_ He, Henry she assumed, was tucking his gun back into his holster before Nicole could even think to draw hers. She watched Melanie brush past the cowboy and into the back door of the house.

“Wait,” Henry followed Melanie through the house wiggling his finger in protest at her intrusion, “What do you think you’re doing little lady?”

Melanie walked into the living room and flopped her body down on one of the couches, “Listen, Henry,” her eyes were already closed in relaxation mode when Nicole entered the room, “There’s no heat or light in this place, so that means either you’re squatting or no one showed you how to work the generator, which is highly unlikely if you are paying rent. I’ve been chased, shot at, I jumped through two windows, and smashed myself through multiple types of glass tonight. I’m just ready for a nap, and this couch is where I’m going to be taking my nap, unless you would like to call the cops and report us ALL as intruders.”

Henry stood over Melanie, contemplated for a moment, removed his hands form his hips and sat in defeat in the chair adjacent to her, “Sounds like you could use a drink.” He pulled a bottle from underneath the table.

Mel shot up out of her sleeping position with glee, seized the bottle from the cowboy, and took a long swig of the whiskey. Sleep was no longer a priority when alcohol was presented to her. She released the bottle from her mouth with a large exhale as if she had just taken her first breath of oxygen after drowning.

“How do you know each other?” Nicole sat next to Mel on the couch.

“This southern gentleman is Henry, we met at Pussy Willows the other night.” Melanie took another drink of the whiskey and handed it back to Henry, “Henry, this is my… uh... Nicole.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Nicole.” Henry tipped his cowboy hat to her, offered her the bottle but she refused it, so her turned back to Mel, “What’s this ‘generator’ you speak of?”

 

*****The next morning – Shitty Motel*****

Melanie picked the lock on their motel room and opened the door to find that all their things had been removed. There was no trace that they had ever stayed there. The door with the shotgun blast and the picture window they destroyed had been completely replaced. Every bullet casing from the parking lot had been picked up.

Mel returned to the Nicole, who was sitting in the pickup as the lookout, and gave her the bad news, “BBD phone went bye-bye. Revenant scum took it all and cleaned up the mess.”

Nicole grimaced and slumped over onto the hood of the truck, “Dolls is going to blacklist my ass.”

“Huh, that’d be better than him killing you.” Melanie scoffed, picked up her personal cellphone, and dialed.

“What? What do you mean Mel?”

Melanie ignores Nicole’s inquiries.

 “Why are you calling ME?” Dolls answers the other end in his naturally pleasing tone, “You are supposed to wait for MY call.”

“Well yeah, you might not have liked who answered that call.”

“What do you mean?”

“Phone’s gone.”

“You lost it?!”

“Calm your tits, you haven’t even let me tell you the worst part yet.”

 

*****An hour later – Coffee Shop*****

Sweaty palms grabbed the handle of the coffee shop door. Nerves weren’t usually an issue for Nicole when it came to women, she was naturally confident, but there was something about Waverly Earp that had her fiddling with the cuffs of her dark blue collared shirt. Thank god the shop down the street had a half-way decent selection, otherwise she would be stuck wearing the same burglar’s attire Waverly had seen her in last night. Fucking Revenants had confiscated their belongings from the motel last night, including their clothes, the BBD phone and files… They were up shit’s creek with BBD and Dolls…

The last 12 hours had been hell for Nicole: attacked by Revenants, realized her partner was lying to her, and she hadn’t had any sleep. The old twin sized bed that Henry lead her to smelled like mildew, there was no pillow, and there was only a dirty sheet to keep her warm. The generator, that Melanie had showed Henry how to power on, didn’t heat the house up quick enough. Nicole spent hours frozen in that bed, staring at the few drawings in crayon that hung on the wall next to the bed. Some were of horses and others of a family. Obviously, it had been a child’s room at one point. Nicole didn’t need her detective skills to figure that one out. The room was so too unsettling for her liking. All hope of getting any sleep had dissipated, so she headed down the stairs and out the front door. She sat on the front porch alone and watched the sunrise until Mel awoke and they drove to the motel.

Melanie had explained everything that happened last night to Dolls this morning and he was on his way to Purgatory now. Nicole was prepared to be relieved of her position as an honorary BBD agent, and possibly relieved of her job in law enforcement altogether. There really wasn’t anything for her to lose after that phone call, except a date with the prettiest girl she had ever laid eyes on, so she had Mel leave her in town while she returned to the Earp Homestead to wait for Dolls.

The redhead walked through the glass doors of the coffeeshop and spotted Waverly quickly. She was in the corner, looking down at her cellphone, and biting her lip nervously. Nicole stood staring for a moment, indulged in all that was Waverly Earp: the lengthy brown hair with the small braid hanging down the side of her face, the sparkling moon shaped eyes that flicked out the window every few seconds, her long sleeved white sweater that cut just deep enough down her chest… Waverly flipped her phone around in her hands impatiently and Nicole decided she wouldn’t keep her waiting any longer. She took a deep breath and swallowed her nerves.

“Worried I wouldn’t show?” Nicole pulled out the wooden chair in front of Waverly and took a seat.

Waverly’s face lit up instantly, “I wasn’t worried.”

“Oh, you weren’t?”

“No way,” Waverly pushed her hair over her shoulder and lifted her chin with pride, “You’re way too interested in me to pass up this opportunity.”

“Someone’s got a big ego.”

“You’ve been stalking me for days, Nicole, I think I have a right to be a little cocky.”

“I have not!” Nicole got a bit defensive but maintained a smile.

“First you are at my job buying me a drink,” Waverly started counting their encounters on her fingers, “then you return to my job and question my best friend about me—”

“I did no such thing!”

“--then we just so happen to _stumble_ upon each other at the gun shop—”

“That WAS a coincidence!” Nicole raised a finger in the air matter-of-factly.

“Suuuure, and last night when you broke into MY family’s house while I was the only one there. That was a coincidence as well?”

“Um, no.”

“What was it then?” Waverly’s eyebrows raised with her playful challenge.

Nicole leaned over the table, closing her big glistening brown eyes in on Waverly, and responded with a new air of confidence, “It was fate.”

Waverly blushed wildly. She fell right into that one. Nicole could be so confident with her words, and Waverly loved it. The brunette turned her face to try and hide her blush in her hair, but Nicole dropped her head to find Waverly’s eyes again.

_Don’t scare her off, Nicole…_

“So, I’m sorry I haven’t texted you today…” Nicole leaned back in her chair, “We had a rough night and I kinda lost my phone.”

“Oh, so you weren’t ignoring me.” Waverly nodded with the realization.

“Not a chance, but you might want to block the number.”

“Why’s that??”

Nicole was quiet for a moment. She wasn’t sure if she should explain to Waverly that they were attacked by Revenants. Waverly already knew about the Revenants, didn’t she? She was stocked up on ammunition and sat upon a rooftop with a rifle at night. Nicole was sure that it had been her but was uncertain if she could inform Waverly in her own demonic involvement. After all, her and Mel were originally there to spy on Waverly’s father… even if the mission was going to be terminated.

“Nicole!”

“Oh sorry, I was just thinking—"

“No, Nicole, your arm! It’s bleeding!” Waverly shook her finger at the blood stain on the sleeve of Nicole’s shirt.

“Shit, yeah, forgot about that.”

In all her worries, she forgot to change the dressing on her bullet wound. The blood had seeped through the piece of sheet she had tied off around her bicep and soaked into her brand-new shirt.

Wide-eyed with concern, Waverly pulled Nicole up from her seat by her good arm, “Come with me!” She led the wounded girl to the restroom of the coffee shop and locked the door behind them. Waverly turned on the sink and snatched several paper towels from a dispenser. She turned her attention to Nicole who was awkwardly twiddling her thumbs in the corner because they were locked in a tiny bathroom together.

“Here, sit.” Waverly pointed to the countertop.

“Yes, mam’” Nicole obeyed and sat upon the counter next to the sink with the running water.

Waverly seized Nicole’s wrist and tried to roll up her sleeve, so she could access the wound, but the shirt wouldn’t roll all the way up to her bicep comfortably. Even the slight struggle caused blood from the wound to trickle down her arm.

“You’ll have to take it off, Nicole.”

“But…”

“Off.”

Her attempt to arguing with a cute, pouty face was futile. “Yes, mam.”

Hesitantly, Nicole began unbuttoning her shirt. She started from her collar and finished at her belt. Waverly tried not to watch as Nicole pulled open the shirt and slid it off one shoulder. Well, she told herself that she tried not to watch. Obviously, she didn’t try hard enough. Waverly was mesmerized with the milky skin presented to her, but a tad disappointed that Nicole was wearing a tank top underneath. As she approached Nicole, she tried to shake off the desire to run her fingers over her lightly freckled shoulder.

“Thank you,” Waverly’s genuinely grateful that Nicole was allowing her to help; she liked to help. She gently untied the piece of cloth wrapped around Nicole’s bicep and revealed 3-inch wound that was bright red, swollen, and still bleeding. “Ouch, Nicole, how did this happen?” She ran some paper towel under the warm running water and dabbed it on the wound carefully.

Nicole flinched a bit at the pressure on her bicep, “We had a rough night.”

“Yeah, you said that already,” Waverly observed the slightly cleaner wound and realized what it was from, “You were shot!?”

“Slightly.” Nicole added.

Waverly dabbed the wound again and then shook her head in disagreement, “This isn’t going to do.” She grabbed the piece of cloth, rinsed it, wrung the blood out of it, and replaced it on Nicole’s bicep with some paper towel for added layers. Waverly tossed the used paper towel in the trash and headed for the door, “Let’s go.”

“Where are we going?” Nicole hooped off the counter, pulled her shirt back over her shoulder and begun to button it up.

“We are going to get you patched up properly.”

“What about coffee?”

“We can have coffee another time Nicole. Plus, I don’t really care for this place.”

The redhead followed Waverly towards the front door of the coffee shop, “Then why did you pick this place?”

“It close to my apartment, and I can’t go to my favorite place anymore.”

“How come?”

“There was an incident with one of their baristas…” Waverly thought of Carl, the Revenant barista who’s brains she had exploded all over Melanie just a few nights ago, “He was a jerk and lost his head.”

*****Apartment over Shorty’s Saloon*****

It had felt like years since Nicole had a hot shower, though it had only been 2 days. When you are running from demons, continuously bleeding, and attempting to sleeping in an abandoned house, you might feel dirty too. The water from the showerhead poured over Nicole’s face and down the rest of her body. She tilted her head down, let it soak her hair, and placed both of her hands on the shower wall, leaning her weight into them. She wished the water could wash away her worries, that somehow it could wipe away her first encounter with a supernatural being. Wash away her shots fired into the demon attacking that girl in the alley months ago. Wash away her report stating, ‘the assailant seemed inhuman.’ Nicole shook her head at her own thoughts; she knew she wouldn’t have done anything differently. She did the right thing protecting that woman in the alley and she stayed honest to herself with her report. Life was just so much easier before that report.

Nicole was an ordinary police officer; patrolling the city and keeping the peace. She had a nice apartment with a tiny view just outside of downtown Calgary, her cat Calamity Jane (CJ) who was the ultimate roommate, and her small group of friends from the academy who kept her busy with sporting activities on her off-days. After the report, Nicole was put on mostly paperwork at the station. She started ignoring her friends to stay up most nights doing research on the paranormal. CJ even noticed the difference in Nicole and had to start pawing at her pant leg to remind her to fill up her cat bowl.

Nicole frowned at the thought of CJ still being with the older woman who lived across the hall from her. She knew that she wasn’t getting as much attention as she was used to. She missed CJ more than she missed her old, non-supernatural life.

A knock at the bathroom door startled her.

“I’m coming in,” Waverly warned, “I brought you a clean shirt and underwear. I don’t really have any pants that will fit your long legs.”

Nicole peaked her head around the shower curtain and smiled at a timid Waverly, who had her back completely turned towards the shower, though she wouldn’t be able to see through the curtain anyway, “Thanks Waves, you’re the best.”

“My pleasure,” Waverly peeped over her shoulder at a wet Nicole, “Uhh,” She threw her eyes to the ground, “I have a first aid kit with some ointment and proper bandages for after your shower, so make sure you clean that gun shot out thoroughly.”

“Yes mam.”

Waverly opened the bathroom door, “I’m not your commanding officer, Nicole. You don’t have to call me ‘mam.’” She shut the door behind her without allowing a response.

Nicole rushed the rest of her shower along. She was certain Waverly had just dropped a hint about Nicole’s background that she had not shared with her yet. Nicole threw her clothes on, omitting the shirt since her arm was still somewhat bleeding, and opened the bathroom door to find an open-mouthed Waverly sitting on the bed.

“I didn’t want to get blood on your shirt.” Nicole crossed her forearm across her abdomen attempting to cover herself a bit.

“Erm,” Waverly was stuck staring at the blue laced bra standing in front of her, “that’s very thoughtful of you.” Nicole had no idea how thoughtful it was.

“So, the first aid kit?”

“Oh!” Waverly popped off the bed and towards the dresser, “Yes, here it is. Have a seat, I’ll get you all fixed up.”

Nicole slouched over in a desk chair near the bed and Waverly shook her head, “On the bed, Nicole. It will be easier.”

The redhead obeyed and sat on the edge of the mattress. Nicole felt a bit uneasy sitting on a girl’s bed, especially when this was their first date. Was this even a date anymore? Waverly had invited her to take a well needed shower in her apartment, borrowed her some clothes, and was now going to tend to her injuries. If this was a date, Waverly was taking the lead, and Nicole was not used to a girl sweeping HER off her feet.

Waverly brought the first aid kit over to her and sat down next to Nicole on the bed. She opened it, fished out a few supplies and turned her attention to Nicole’s arm.

“This might sting a bit.” Waverly laced her finger with some clear ointment and carefully dabbed it along Nicole’s wound, then she covered it in some gauze, wrapped it in dressing, and secured it with surgical tape, “There. Good as new.” Her hand was still clutching Nicole’s arm even though she was finished wrapping it.

“Thank you,” Nicole gave her a warm smile, “Maybe we can continue our date now?”

“You’re half naked in my bed,” Waverly gestured at Nicole’s bare torso, “I’m pretty sure it never stopped.”

Nicole blushed and nervously pulled the clean shirt over her head. Though Nicole looked adorable in that oversized Shorty’s tee shirt she found stashed in the back of her closet, Waverly was a bit frustrated that she couldn’t glimpse at Nicole’s bare chest anymore.  

“How did you find out I’m a cop?” Nicole raised her eyebrow.

“Pretty easily, Officer Haught-pants.” Waverly giggled at her recollection of Melanie’s nickname for Nicole.

“Mel just couldn’t help herself…” Nicole rolled her eyes.

“Don’t worry Nicole, I can keep a secret.” Waverly placed a reassuring hand on Nicole’s thigh.

“So can I,” Nicole stretched her neck towards Waverly, their faces grazing as she whispered into her ear, “I haven’t told anyone about you shooting at people from rooftops at night.”

Waverly swallowed hard. She thought she had the upper hand knowing that Nicole was a cop. It made her feel in control of the situation and it made her comfortable. Now, Nicole knew her secret, and Waverly lost the power. The smirk on Nicole’s face as she pulled away from Waverly said that she knew exactly what she had done.

“They aren’t people, Nicole.” Waverly head sank.

“Yes, I know that. Hey, I was just joking.” Nicole lifted Waverly’s chin with her hand so that they made eye contact, “I get it Waves. We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

She didn’t say anything at first, just focused on the soft brown eyes in front of her. Those eyes eased all the stress in Waverly’s body. There was no reason to, she barely knew her, but she trusted Nicole’s eyes.

“I want to talk about it… about Revenants… especially with you,” Waverly took Nicole’s hand from her thigh and held it in her own, “just not at this moment.”

Nicole squeezed Waverly’s fingers between her own, “Then what would you like to discuss at this moment?”

Waverly released Nicole’s grasp and placed her hands on both sides of her pale face, “This.” She placed a soft kiss on Nicole’s lips. They hung there for a minute, eyes closed, inhaling deeply, in the sweet contact. Upon release, both exhaled simultaneously into smiles.

“I’ve been wanting to discuss that as well.” Nicole admitted in a daze.

“I didn't really know how to start the conversation.”

“Oh, sure you did.” Nicole leaned into Waverly, bringing their lips an inch apart. She studied Waverly’s reaction; who’s eyes were full of need and teeth were biting at her own lip. Nicole could feel the approval in her heavy breathing. She closed the gap between their lips, this time, deepening the kiss and pulling Waverly’s body into her. Waverly threw her arms around Nicole’s neck and tangled her hands up in her wet hair. Their kisses turned desperate, and Nicole tugged Waverly’s leg around her waist, so she could lower them onto the bed. Lips still locked, Nicole laid her body against Waverly’s, intertwining their legs, and eliciting a small moan from the brunette.

The sound of Waverly’s moan rippled through Nicole’s mouth and down to her core. She broke their kiss and propped herself up on both arms, hovering over Waverly’s body, “Are you okay? Is this okay?”

Waverly’s eyes glossed over. _Could this woman get any more perfect?_ She snaked her hand out of messy wet hair and rested it on Nicole’s cheek, “Yes, maybe we could just take it slow?”

Nicole kissed Waverly’s palm that was cupping her check, “Of course, Waves.” The red head went to sit up and Waverly pulled her back down on top of her by her neck.

“Not that slow.” Waverly nudged Nicole’s nose with her own until the redhead settled their bodies back together, then she connected their lips once more.

“Mmmm...” Nicole hummed into Waverly’s mouth as she slid her hand down the toned body underneath her. Her fingers lightly traced the patch of abdomen peaking from between Waverly’s sweater and jeans but continued down to her the girl’s thigh. Nicole arranged kisses down Waverly’s neck to her collarbone, prompting Waverly to arch her body into Nicole’s and let out a small whimper.

“My God.” An unfamiliar voice startled the two women on the bed, causing the smaller one to push the dominating one off her and on to the floor straight onto her back, knocking the wind out of her.

“Oh! Shit!” Waverly covered her mouth with both hands in shock, “I’m so sorry!” She reached beside the bed for Nicole.

“It’s okay Waves.” Nicole quickly recovered from the fall, lifting herself up with the bedpost.

Waverly turned her head and squinted at the woman standing in the doorway, “Damn Willa, don’t you knock?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Dolls is on his way! Woop Woop! And MelHaught (yes, i'm calling them that now, until her name changes lol) is gonna be in some trouble, maybe, possibly... probably?  
> Staying with Doc at the Homestead, that's fun.   
> Oh, and... AHHHH! How could I forget about the WayHaught date? It was only 3/4 of the entire chapter!!   
> Also, there was Willa... gross.   
> Let me know what you think! :)


	8. Doc and the Bitch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit about Doc.  
> Dolls gives good news.  
> A little more Willa than I would like to admit.  
> 

*****Earp Homestead – Late Morning*****

Henry was a man of solitude. The only company he kept, apart from his whiskey, was the girls he picked up at the strip joint he bartended at. The time he spent with these women was minimal; a few hours at their apartments or a couple minutes in the backroom of the club. Strictly business, ya know? He was a classy man that way. Well… he was a charming man, anyway.

With that thick mustache, southern draw, sturdy figure, and those baby blues, Henry had no problem making friends, especially of the female variety. Since the first night he walked into Pussy Willows, he was a hit with the crowd. His bartending skills had needed some improvement, but his ability to double as a bouncer got him the job. The owner of Pussy Willows, Willa Earp, appreciated that Henry treated the dancers with respect and made sure that the rest of the patrons did as well.

At a time, Willa Earp was the closest thing that Henry had to a friend. She had saved his life and, by providing him with honest work, gave him a place in this world. This world that he no longer fit into. When Willa pulled Henry from the bottom of that well, she had no questions for him but, “Are you okay?” She never inquired about his old-timey attire or his lack of knowledge on all things electronic. Once, in his earlier days working at the club, Willa had made a joke to a customer about Henry being ‘Amish’. Henry wasn’t sure what Amish meant at the time, but now, that he and this Siri gal on his phone understand each other, he thinks that may be why Willa didn’t question him about his past. That was the only thing that Henry liked about Willa, her lack of curiosity in him. He would have considered her a friend, if she wasn’t such a stone-cold bitch.

Yes, Willa saved his life. Yes, Willa got him a job. Yes, Willa doesn’t question his past. But damn, did Henry hate her now. All over… what people normally hate each other over… you guessed it… sex.

 Henry understood sleeping with your boss was a big faux pas, but after finishing off the bourbon in Willa’s office with her, she became much more attractive than usual, and Henry didn’t care about the repercussions. The sex, though regretful, was good, but as soon as they woke up half naked on her rug in the morning, all hell broke loose. Willa screamed at Henry, convinced him that she would have never touched his ass sober, kicked him out of her office, threw his clothes in his face and slammed the door. Since then, Willa had given him the cold-shoulder around the club, and when it was necessary for them to talk business (actual business) she could not wipe the disgusted look off her face. Out of spite, she even evicted him from the couch in the backroom of the club, where he had slept most nights. Henry was sure that she was more upset with herself than with Henry about the incident, since he had heard talk around the club about a secret boyfriend of hers, but she didn’t have to be such a bitch to him about it. She was the one who kissed him first!

Despite having to sleep in an abandoned house, Henry thought he was better off having Willa hate him. He had too much baggage and too many secrets to let anyone close to him anyway. Not that he wanted that, especially with Willa. He hadn’t been close to anyone for a very long time. Longer than thought to be humanly possible.

Now, he was comfortable in his abandoned house. It was cold, but he had become accustomed to the cold being stuck at the bottom of a well for… well… a hundred and thirty years or so. The sign hanging out on the front post reading, ‘EARP,’ gave Henry a rush a nostalgia every time. He could feel a brush of wind over his shoulder when he passed under the name. He played with the idea that it was Wyatt. That he was trying to scare Doc from his family’s property, or that he was just saying hello from beyond the grave, or he was crazy and imagined the whole thing. Whatever it was, Henry returned to the Earp Homestead almost every night to lay his head.

There was little disturbance on the Homestead during the months Henry had stayed there. There were a few teenagers shooting pellet guns at the barn once, but they didn’t return after Henry ran them off with his own real gun. Waverly Earp and Gus McCready had visited the grave site in the backyard a few times, but never entered the house or the barn, where he stashed his motorcycle out of sight. He was able to enjoy peace and quiet while he laughed at cat videos on his celly-phone and drank his memories away, until tonight, when that good-looking brunette invited herself in and appropriated his favorite sofa.

Henry’s first impression of Melanie was interesting. When they met at Pussy Willows a few nights ago, he relished in their drunk conversation and flirting game. He considered acquiring a motel room for the night for them to get to know each other better, until he finally saw her eyes in the light. There was no mistaken them. The ghost of Wyatt Earp screamed at him through her eyes. _I really am going crazy,_ Henry thought as he rushed out of Pussy Willows like a… like a pussy. It took him a whole 24 hours to drink enough whiskey to get Melanie out of his head, but here she was again, walking on Earp property no less… _Who is this gal?_

“You were told not to engage!”

“We weren’t waving our guns around at them Dolls! They attacked US!”

From the kitchen, Henry could hear Melanie arguing with a man in the living room. The man seemed very displeased with Melanie and said some ungentlemanly things to the lady that made Henry mighty pissed off.

“You don’t even know where your partner is right now?”

“Well yeah, somewhere in town…”

“Somewhere?”

“I dropped Nicole in town this morning, she said she had something to do. I thought it was a good idea that she wasn’t here when you arrived since you seem to think she is expendable!”

“You are a team! You stick together, even if it’s to get discharged!”

“Discharged? Is that what BBD calls it? You’re something else Dolls.”

“That’s not— You don’t— I don’t know why I thought you were ready for this. You’re undisciplined, inexperience, and general pain in my a—”

“That is NOT how you speak to a lady.” Henry interjected as he walked into sight. He couldn’t stand listening to the man tare Melanie down any longer. Henry didn’t know what she had done, but he was certain that she didn’t deserve to be spoken to in such a manner.

Dolls snatched his gun out of his holster quickly, but not as fast as Henry did, “Who are you?”

“Well seeing as this is where I sleep, why don’t you introduce yourself first and I will consider not shooting you.”

Melanie rolled her eyes at the two men pointing guns at each other from across the living room, “I am really getting sick of all these Mexican standoffs lately…” she slumped on the couch and kicked her boots onto the coffee table, “Dolls this is Henry, he’s a bartender and this is his place, sort of. Henry this is Dolls, my asshole boss. There. Now that you’ve been introduced, so either shoot each other or put your junk away.”

The men stood motionless for a moment until Henry lowered his weapon. Henry figured that he could draw faster than this fella could pull the trigger anyway, so it was best to respect the lady’s wishes. Dolls returned the gesture tentatively.

“Okay, so what’s up? If we are discharged, can Nicole go back to her boring cop life?”

“This can’t be discussed in front of him.” Dolls darts his eyes over to Henry.

Melanie twists her head to look at Henry, who is steaming from the ears with anger, “Can you give us a minute, cowboy? I’ll holler if I need your assistance.” She winked.

Henry nodded and walked back into the kitchen, where he could still hear most of their conversation and could react quickly enough. He felt like he needed to protect Melanie, and it wasn’t because she was a woman or because he got an uneasy feeling from this Dolls fella.

When Dolls was sure that Henry was far enough away, he sat next to Mel on the couch and began, “Listen,” his voice softened, “originally, I was only given permission from BBD for a recon assignment with two temporary agents on this case… but after I told them you commandeered Wyatt Earp’s revolver and were able to kill a Revenant… they agreed to give us some more time in Purgatory.”

“So, Nicole and I, we did good then?”

Dolls hesitated, but then placed a hand on Melanie’s shoulder, “You did good.”

“I knew it! Nicole was so worried, but my instincts never fail me.” Melanie popped her collar triumphantly. She wouldn’t admit that she was just as worried, not for her future, but for Nicole. In the short time that they had been partners, Mel had grown fond of the redheaded cop. Not that she would admit that to anyone. “Wait, you said BBD agreed to give ‘US’ some more time. What do you mean by ‘us’?”

“Us. As in, I will be assisting you and Nicole from now on. Since you’ve already been recognized by the Revenants as a threat, you will need additional back up. Especially, since BBD has given us the new task of bagging and tagging at least one Revenant.”

“Good. I was really getting sick of spying on Ward.”

“Oh, we will still be collecting information on the Earps and Svane. We know they are involved with the Revenants in some way. All three of the targets are going to be in one place tonight; a party at the Earp mansion. We are to infiltrate the party and study their interactions.”

“A party!? Like with free food and drinks? Shit, Dolls,” Mel smacked him on his shoulder, “I’m going to like having you around more than I thought.”

There was almost a hint of a smirk on Doll’s serious face, “Yeah, well we aren’t on the invitation list, since we aren’t locals, so I have to figure out how we are going to get into the party first.” He stood up, grabbed his jacket off the back of a chair, and slipped it over his shoulders, “Pick-up Nicole, tell her she has nothing to worry about, and I’ll meet you both back here at 1400.” He opened the front door to leave, “Oh, one more thing.”

“Yes Mr. Bossman sir?”

“Make sure the cowboy isn’t here when I get back.” Dolls shut the door behind him quickly before he could receive a response.

Melanie countered to herself, “It’s not like I own the place.”

“Technically, it is more yours than it is mine.” Henry walked into the room, leaned on the wall, and lit the cigarillo hanging from his mouth with a match, “Ms. Earp.”

“Ha… what?”

“You need some work on your poker face.” Henry blew smoke from his mouth and pointed his cigarillo at Mel, “I knew there was something about you. I could see it in your eyes when we met at the club.” He took another drag, “Wyatt’s eyes.”

“Wyatt Earp?”

“Yes,” Henry shook his head and laughed as if he thought the words coming from his own mouth were insane, “Wyatt… I’ve also noticed you have his gun tucked in your belt…”

Melanie kept scoffing and blowing air through her lips, “Psssh, how would you know what Wyatt’s eye looked like?”

“I’ll keep your secret if you keep mine.”

“Sure Hank. Let’s pretend I have a secret.” Mel stood up from the couch and walked over to Henry, “Shoot.”

Henry lifted his hat from his head and held it to his chest, “I was close friends with Wyatt Earp a long time ago. My real name is John Henry, but people like to call me 'Doc.'”

“Doc…? Doc Holliday?”

“The one and only,” Henry sat his hat back upon his head, “and I think I can be of some assistance to you. For instance, I could provide you and your friends with a way into Ward Earp’s party tonight.”

“Doc Holliday?” Melanie’s brain hadn’t seemed to catch up to the conversation yet.

 

*****Apartment at Shorty’s – Proceeding Willa’s rude interruption*****

Willa lifted her large sunglasses from her eyes and rested them on top of her head, “I didn’t think you were home little sister,” she turned her attention to Nicole who was still gaining her composure from the fall, “and I certainly wouldn’t have thought you would have had _company_.”

Nicole’s face reddened from the way Willa emphasized the word ‘company.’

“Well, I do,” Waverly sprung off the bed and towards Willa, pushing her back out the front door, “so please leave.”

“You’re not even going to introduce me?” Willa pushed past Waverly crudely, as any big-bully of a sister would do, and offered her hand to Nicole, “Don’t mind her manners, I’m Willa Earp, Waverly’s big sister and better half.”

Nicole tentatively took her hand but shook it firmly, “I’m Nicole. Nice to meet you.”

“It’s my pleasure.” Willa circled around Nicole, looking her up and down, sizing her up, “Are you new in town?”

Nicole followed Willa with suspicious eyes, “Yeah, just visiting for the festival.”

“Right.” A devilish grin spread across Willa’s face when she looked over at Waverly, “I can see you are enjoying our festivities.” ‘Festivities’ meaning her baby sister.

“Willa!” Waverly’s nostrils flared in protest, “Why are you here?”

“Oh yeah! I completely forgot!” Willa pinched Nicole’s cheek playfully and bit her lower lip, “This cutie had me all distracted.” She walked over to the bedroom closet, opened the door and began riffling through Waverly’s wardrobe. “Daddy is having that party tonight at the mansion, and I was curious on what you were going to wear.”

 “I’m not going.” Waverly folded he arms over her chest.

“Of course, you are.” Willa pulled a gold dress from the closet, “This is hot. Can I have this?”

“You can borrow it.” Waverly shut the closet door and lead Willa, who carried the gold dress over one arm, to the front door again.

“Okay, Okay!” Willa raised her hands in defense, “I get it sis, you want some alone time with your that smokin’ redhead over there.” She winked at Nicole from across the room.

Nicole cringed. Willa just flirted with her twice, right in front of Waverly. Not only was it uncomfortable for Nicole, but she could only imagine how Waverly felt.

“Just promise you’ll be at the party tonight, for Daddy’s sake.” Willa held Waverly’s shoulders and exaggerated a pout, “He really needs both of his daughters there for support. You’ve been M.I.A. lately, and he’s starting to think you hate him.”

“For support? You mean to make him look good?”

Willa sighed, “He specifically asked me to make sure you make an appearance tonight, okay? Don’t get me on his bad side, or he might cut me off again. Please, little sister….” Her praying hands shook in Waverly’s face.

At that moment, Nicole noticed the resemblance between Willa and Melanie. They had the exact same pleading expression, like they knew they would get their way but jokingly begged for it anyway. Nicole chuckled under her breath. _These sisters are something else._

“I will even add a plus one to the list for you, so you can bring Nicole.”

“I’ll think about it, Willa.” Waverly held the door in anticipation for Willa to exit.

Willa hugged Waverly and kissed her cheek lightly, careful to not disturb her lipstick, “I’ll see you there!” She walked out the door and turned around to look at the redhead once more, “I hope I’ll be seeing you tonight as well, Nicole. I look forward to us getting to know each other. You must be something special to have Waverly batting for the other team.”

With that comment, Waverly slammed the door in Willa’s face and let out a heavy sigh.

“She’s… uh…” Nicole stammered.

Waverly held a hand to her forehead in bewilderment, “She’s such a bitch.”

“Well, yeah,” Nicole she waltzed over and wrapped her arms around the smaller girl, “You okay?”

“I’m fine now,” Waverly laid her head on Nicole’s chest and took a deep breath, inhaling the redhead’s sweet scent, “You smell vanilla dipped donuts.”

“Uh, okay? Is that a good thing?” Nicole looked down into a smiling face.

“They are my favorite.” Waverly stretched up and laid a brisk kiss on Nicole’s pink lips, “So, I know that our first date isn’t over yet…” she slid out from between Nicole’s arms and sat over on the bed, “but did you have plans tonight?”

Nicole sat next to Waverly and shook her head, “Nope.”

“Would you mind accompanying me to a party tonight? My dad has this big thing at the mansion as a closing celebration for the festival, but really, it’s so he can flash his money at the locals and have an excuse to get plastered without looking like an alcoholic. Most of Purgatory attends it, I mean, who doesn’t like free food and drinks?”

“Hmm,” Nicole pretends she hasn’t already made her decision, “since there will be free drinks, I’m there.”

Waverly playfully punches Nicole’s arm for teasing her, causing Nicole to scream in pain. She forgot that she had just wrapped the gun shot in that exact spot. Nicole keeled back on the bed in pain.

“Oh! Shit-balls! I’m so sorry Nicole!” Waverly leaned over her in alarm.

“Ahhh…” Nicole sucks a deep breath through her gritted teeth, “That’s okay Wave, you’ll just have to kiss the pain away.” Her painful expression drifted into a cocky smirk.

Greens eyes glared at her, “Nicole Haught, are you trying to seduce me?”

Nicole sat up on the bed, “Not at all… I just like kissing you,” She kissed Waverly’s crown and then leaned their foreheads together, “but we should talk, at least a bit.”

“Yes, so first things first,” Waverly crossed her legs butterfly style on the bed and sat up straight. She was ready to get down to this talking business, “why are you in Purgatory?”

Before Nicole could breathe her next word, her cellphone rang from her back pocket.

“I thought you lost your phone?” Waverly raised an eyebrow.

“I did,” Nicole checked her screen to find Melanie was calling, “that was a different phone, but I’m sorry Wave, I gotta take this…” she stood up from the bed, “one sec, okay?”

Waverly confirmed with a nod and polite smile.

Nicole stood only a couple feet from Waverly, trying to not be entirely rude with her phone call, but also providing slight privacy if she had to lower her voice, “Hey, how did it go?”

“I’m doing fine, how was your day?” Melanie spoke with a mouth full of something on the other end of the line. _Probably a donut_ , Nicole assumed.

Nicole turned her back to Waverly and increased the urgency in her voice, “Quit the small talk. I would like to know if I get to keep my life or not.”

 “10-4 there, Haught-pants. The mission’s still a ‘go.’ The boss man wasn’t as peeved as we initially thought. He even said we did good. Can you believe that? An actual compliment.”

“What? Wait… the mission’s still on? What?”

“Uggghh yes, I just said that. Doll’s isn’t going to kill you or blacklist your ass, okay? Now, where are you? I need to pick you up. Doll’s said we need a… something about underwear."

“Debriefing?”

“Yes, that.”

“Okay…” Nicole turns and looks over at Waverly sympathetically, “I’m at Shorty’s, the bar we came to the first night we were here.”

“Haught damn, drinking at two o’clock? Aww, I must really be rubbing off on you. Well, I’m just down the street. I’ll be there in 2.” Mel hung up abruptly.

“Shit,” she walked over to Waverly, held both of her hands in hers, and sighed, “I know we said we would talk…”

“You have to leave.” Waverly already knew, she could hear most of the phone conversation between Nicole and who she could only assume was her rambunctious brunette partner, Melanie. She wasn’t trying to eaves-drop, but the room was very tiny, and Melanie’s voice carried through the phone louder than Nicole’s did from two feet away.

“Yes, I’m sorry,” the redhead lifted one of Waverly’s hands to her mouth and secured it between her lips.

“I get it, you don’t have to explain now.” Waverly flashed a small smile, reached up the back of Nicole’s neck, ran her fingers through damp red locks, slightly scratching at scalp, “Will I still get to see you tonight?”

Nicole purred at the sensation of Waverly’s nails, “I’ll make sure of it.” She dipped down and laid a small kiss on Waverly’s lips, then pulled away reluctantly, grabbed her jacket, opened the door, and threw Waverly a full dimpled smile before closing the door behind her.

Waverly flopped back on her bed and marveled in the dizzy state that Nicole’s last kiss had left her in. When the door popped back open, Waverly quickly sat back up to see Nicole coming back in.

“I almost forgot, I’m going to need your number again…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG, Doc and Willa did the 'do,' Gross. There is a reason for this, I promise. There is usually a reason for everything.  
> Dolls will be sticking around! So there's that.  
> Another Wayhaught date is in the making. WARNING: There will be angst. 
> 
> Ugh, I still can't get over how much Willa was in this chapter. Feel free to yell at me in the comments and never read another update... or have faith that i will kill her off soon.  
> Comment some gruesome ways you would like Willa to die. I'll use my favorite!!  
> Add me on twitter @haught_shot

**Author's Note:**

> The first chapter was a bit rough. I had so much info i wanted to cram in there... I hope you liked it!  
> Let me know what you think!  
> Sorry if Wynonna's name gets confusing! Melanie/Wynonna. I figured that if it were to be anything besides Wynonna, it had to be Melanie!  
> Also, sorry there was no Waverly in this chapter.  
> Chapter 2 has lots of Waverly! And the Wayhaught meeting ;)  
> Thanks for taking the time to read it! I really enjoyed writing it!


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